NCC inspects replicating plants
By Tade Makinde
Adebambo Adewopo, DG, NCC
The Nigerian
Copyright Commission (NCC), as part of measures in implementing the Copyright Optical Discs Plants Regulation, has carried out inspection checks on four replicating plants engaged in the production of CDs and VCDs.
The exercise, carried out in Lagos by Copyright Inspectors, in company with police operatives, however, revealed that plants inspected were taking steps to regularize their operations in line with copyright regulations.
The two-day inspection was conducted on Sky Media Production Ltd. and Ecomax Media Ltd., as well as Alpha Magnetics Industries Ltd., and Akina Music International Ltd last week.
Director-General of the Commission, Adebambo Adewopo, said periodic compliance inspection was one of the requirements for the on-going registration of optical discs plants in the country.
Represented by the Commission’s legal adviser, Mr. Sunday Fagbemi, the D-G assured that the exercise would be carried out randomly, and in phases,to cover all replicating plants and to ensure their compliance with the best practices spelt out by the Regulation.
“ Registration is mandatory for replicating plants to do legitimate business in the country and pre-registration and post registration inspection is a requirement of the law to ensure compliance,” he stated, adding that, the current exercise had shown some level of compliance so far.
The NCC boss, however, underscored the need for the replicating plants to require proof of copyright ownership as a condition for doing legitimate business with them.
TheD-G appealed to copyright owners, marketers, producers, and relevant stakeholders ,to team up with the Commission to make a success of the current efforts of subjecting replicating industries in the music and movie sector to copyright regulation.
He urged copyright owners to take advantage of the Commission’s Copyright Notification Scheme by notifying it of all their creative works, thereby assisting in the development of a databank of copyright works and authors.
He called on right owners not to patronize unregistered replicating plants, while registered plants should not do business with suspected pirates of copyright protected works.
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