BEVERLY HILLS, February 15, (THEWILL) – The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has revealed that it seized 1,783,914 copyright works across the country, last year, ranging from DVDs and books to MP3s and software.
In its annual report for the year 2015, the commission revealed that it saved the government and copyright owners from losing over N1.5 billion for the year 2015, after revealing that the estimated market value of the confiscated items was N1,649,343,460.00.
Its anti-piracy operations also led to the arrest of 98 suspected pirates and prompted the public burning of 10.5 million pirated works seized from Kaduna and Kano states in October of last year.
The commission, which is concerned with the enforcement and regulation of copyright in Nigeria, has credited this achievement to rigorous training of its in-house staff to boost intelligence gathering, positive attitudes and investigative skills.
It also reported that Nigeria remained off the United States list of 301 countries perceived to be lacking in efforts to combat intellectual property crimes.
A report combining the efforts of four years – 2011 – 2014, revealed that the commission saved the government from losing N6, 423,221,600 to piracy while 443 suspected pirates had been arrested. The report states that the anti-piracy operations had also led to an increase in sales, profits and job creations by 50 percent.
The commission, however, expressed concerns that poor financing, corruption and culture are among the challenges hindering its progress.
Story by David Oputah
