The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has called on users of copyright works, especially in the hospitality industry, to obtain performance licences from copyright owners in order to enable creators benefit from their works.

The director-general of NCC, John Asein, made the call at the Colloquium on Copyright Licensing of Public Performance Rights, held in commemoration of the 2025 African Copyright and Collective Management Day in Abuja on Wednesday.

Mr Asein said the Copyright Act, 2022, made it clear that hotels and hospitality businesses must secure licences before publicly performing music, films, or broadcasts.

“While some may be tempted to cut corners, they must recognise that musicians, recording companies, actors, and film producers deserve to recoup from the secondary use of their works.

“When their creations are woven into the ambience of a hotel lobby, a guest room or a restaurant, they are no less part of the hotel’s commercial attraction than the service.

“It is, therefore, a matter of equity that they are fairly compensated.

“Cable and broadcasting organisations also carry distinct responsibilities by transmitting content into homes, hotels, and public venues, as well as providing decoders or other devices because they sit at a crucial point in the value chain,” he added.

The NCC boss said the scope of licences offered to subscribers must be clear and unambiguous, stressing that a subscription licence does not automatically confer rights of public performance in commercial spaces.

He explained that this clarity was vital to avoid misuse, ensure compliance, and safeguard the legitimate interests of content creators.

On the new regulations, Mr Asein noted that the commission recognised the challenges of enforcement and the complexities of multiple rights, which informed the introduction of the Collective Management Regulations 2025.

“These Regulations seek to entrench accountability and transparency in the collective management system, ensuring that right owners are fairly remunerated and users have a seamless and trustworthy means of clearing rights.

“Licensing of public performance rights should be straightforward and driven by good-faith negotiations. Where disagreements arise, the Act and the Regulations provide for prompt recourse to the Commission’s Dispute Resolution Panel.

“This mechanism is available to ensure that disputes are resolved efficiently, without acrimony, and in a way that sustains mutual respect and good business practice.”

He recalled that the commission had earlier issued a copyright advisory, warning users of copyright works — especially hotels and others in the hospitality business — to regularise their operations by obtaining appropriate licences from copyright owners or collective management organisations representing them.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the licence granted by Multichoice Nigeria Ltd., the paid satellite television service that provided the contrivances through which the hotel accessed the audiovisual works in question, did not avail the hotel.

“We therefore call on Multichoice and all other cable stations to make full disclosure to their commercial subscribers on the limits of the licence granted at the point of subscription.

“International licensing systems have shown the importance of transparency and business certainty while ensuring creators are paid.”

According to him, the commission has renewed its commitment to providing an enabling environment for right owners to maximise returns on their creative endeavours, while users are allowed legitimate access in return for their user licence.

He urged stakeholders to remember that “compliance is not just a legal requirement but a moral and economic imperative.”

The NCC boss added that by respecting boundaries and honouring the rights of creators, Nigeria’s creative economy would continue to thrive, enriching both culture and commerce.

He said the colloquium was aimed at engaging in frank dialogue to promote a balanced copyright system that is mutually beneficial to both business operators and the creative community.

According to him, collective management succeeds where users are provided clarity and right owners are treated fairly.

“Today’s event focused on licensing of public performance rights through the collective management system. As copyright law grants authors a wide bundle of rights, the right of public performance is among the most intricate because of its diverse application in user environments.”

Also speaking, Obi Asike, director-general, National Council for Arts and Culture, in his keynote address, said copyright remained the foundation of creative industry growth, adding that rights management was what enabled contracts, licensing, investment and royalties.

According to him, the challenge is not lack of laws but poor implementation and enforcement, stressing the need to make laws work for the benefit of creators, businesses and investors.

Mahmood Ali-Balogun, chairman, Audio-Visual Rights Society (AVRS), said CMOs ensure that artists are compensated.

According to him, their existence is not to hinder business but to help members collect money they cannot ordinarily collect directly from users.

“I appeal to NCC to enforce the laws in order for people to know that laws are behind them in what we are doing.

“We are not those local government touts who go to collect money, but what we are doing is quite legitimate.”

Pupa Oritz Wiliki, chairman, Musical Copyright Society Nigeria (MCSN), said creative people were not pensioners, but their work serves as their pension.

“It is sad that those who have given their best in making people happy, forgetting their sorrows, die in sorrows.

This is because there is no money to actually take care of themselves, as some of the money is left for people who do not even understand where the sweat was coming from.

“I agree that today we have a great NCC who is very supportive of ensuring that creative people get their dues. We are happy with that, but we still also want them to do more in terms of enforcement.”

(NAN)