Determined to deepen its existing partnership with
Operatives of Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) in Kaduna State have resolved to step up interagency collaboration to check piracy of copyright works in the State.
The new State Director of NCC Kaduna Office, Mrs Susan Bashorun revealed that both enforcement agencies reached the understanding during a consultative meeting held in the course of her courtesy call on the Commandant of NSCDC, Kaduna State Command, Mr. Idris Yahaya Adah on 28th September 2022.
Mrs Bashorun who led the NCC delegation stated that the purpose of the visit was to strengthen the existing relationship between the two organisations and to seek the support of NSCDC during the Commission’s enforcement activities geared at curbing the incidence of piracy to the barest minimum in the State.
She used the opportunity of the visit to present the Musical Copyright Society of Nigeria (MCSN), whose representatives were part of the delegation, as the only collecting society approved by the Commission to negotiate, collect and distribute royalties on behalf of artistes in the music industry.
The Director also solicited the support of the Commandant to enable MCSN perform its duties within the state unhindered.
Meanwhile, the NCC Kaduna Office has in furtherance of the Commission’s zero tolerance for piracy, embarked on an unscheduled inspection exercise for copyright compliance checks on booksellers and their marketing outlets at the Kaduna Central Market.
The Director, NCC Kaduna Office, Mrs. Bashorun said the inspection exercise was carried out on 27th September 2022 by a team of Copyright Inspectors who also used the exercise to carry out copyright awareness sensitisation targeted at booksellers at the Central Market.
In line with the Commission’s strategic goal of curtailing the distribution of pirated literary materials, Copyright Inspectors from the Kaduna Office also embarked on compliance inspection and sensitisation exercise to schools as they prepared for resumption.
According to the Director, the early commencement of the exercise was to ensure that original books from legitimate sources were distributed to the end users.
She added that in the course of the exercise, the inspected schools were furnished with the contacts of the publishing firms and their authentic sales representatives.
