IT is an open secret that Intellectual Property (IP) owners are seriously worried about the deepening state of intellectual property theft in the country.They have always complained endlessly about the pervasiveness of piracy and counterfeiting activities.The verdict is that intellectual property right owners are yet to begin to reap from their creativity, despite government's effort aimed at curbing the ugly trend through the enforcement of copyright laws.But in this encounter with an intellectual property expert, former Director General (DG) of National Copyright Commission (NCC), Prof. Adebambo Adewopo, who served for six years as DG of the commission, where he passionately, led the war against piracy, shares his views.He lamented the scantiness of materials on IP and advocated a reform of the IP law in the country.On the prevalence of intellectual property theft and the inability to minimize the trend, he said: 'Enforcement is the very heartbeat of IP rights, particularly in the civil realm, following the exploitation of the rights. While the rate of intellectual property violation is high due to many factors we cannot go into now, IP owners have not yet fully enforced their rights compared to other branches of the law. That is why it is important to appreciate the significance of the critical issues of copyright, particularly in the context of the creative industries that now requires expert solutions.The issues to be considered are the role of key players in the IP context, the role of IP itself in protecting content, particularly in the fast-growing entertainment, media and the telecoms industries, as well as facilitating transactions across these industries or the wider contractual, licensing, and merchandising regimes that also reflect the trademark and commercial designs market with their separate IP issues.We also have to look at the commercial exploitation of personality rights or even the legal issues arising from technological developments and emerging business models that have all dotted the IP landscape and in turn constituting its portfolio of practice.From these perspectives of IP practice and administration, the reform of IP laws, therefore, is more urgent now than ever. Now, piracy in specific cases can be adjudicated upon one way or the other.However, piracy as a phenomenon, like other violations, is part of commerce or other human activities that can only be controlled or reduced through a concert of actions ' law enforcement, technology, regulation ' both public and private, public enlightenment and other regimes.As a regulatory agency, NCC embarked on a strategic stream of integrated actions ' involving administration, enforcement and public enlightenment ' which we termed Strategic Action Against Piracy (STRAP) to fill a lot of existing gaps, such as for instance, the dynamics of the market place, where the demand far outstrips supply, which brought about scarcity or shortage of original works in the market.That was part of what the structure of piracy itself was built on, and then, digital technology and the Internet helped the illegal industry of piracy, thus requiring the combination of far-reaching legal and technological solutions now available in many jurisdictions and under international IP instruments.That is why the IP industries with their rich resources, which are the major sources of revenue, job creation and economic growth is very well-known to national and international policy makers and they are designing policies and actions to bring them into huge economic opportunities for the people.IP governance today is an indispensable part of developmental agenda both at the national and global levels that governments have fully embraced for sustainable development.On his experience at the NCC, dealing with specialised area such as IP administration and enforcement, he said it was quite interesting and challenging. This is how he puts it: 'To capture it in a most simplistic context; it was both interesting and challenging with all its dynamics. Interesting because of the wide-ranging issues of copyright at play, which as an intellectual property lawyer, I was at home with.'To that extent, it was an advantage in terms of navigating the technicalities of copyright administration. I thoroughly enjoyed it. There was no dull moment. Then challenging because of the many problems, which we had to solve ' regulatory, administrative, industry, policy and so on.'No regulatory agency is spared the intractable challenges in the quandaries of regulation ' it naturally comes with the environment, the players, and the whole system in which we operate, particularly in a developing country like Nigeria.Essentially, IP is still very much specialised and not very well understood in its innumerable nuances in the context of our local environment. There are not many materials in this area of the law in Nigeria.'Indeed, intellectual property law in Nigeria in terms of jurisprudence is scanty, though still evolving. It is at a nascent stage of development. The whole spectrum of the creative and innovation industries, and I use the word 'innovation' here very loosely, is yearning for a more robust and dynamic legal framework that exists.'The fact that creative industries the world over have become dominant global players have pushed the frontiers of intellectual property beyond boundaries.'So Nigeria is under a compelling obligation to catch up with that, especially considering the tremendous importance, opportunities and dimensions of intellectual property that Nigeria is capable of generating and harnessing. Interestingly, the various segments, namely the legal and regulatory framework, the industries both on the IP owner and user sides, the law practice as well as rights management are now gradually coming to terms with that and evolving a modicum of a system ostensibly running. That more lawyers are now interested in the field is a useful development for the law and the practice. The absence of many materials on the subject is a function of the development of the law and that is gradually changing.'On how he found time to publish a new book on copyright, he stated: 'First, I'm still a young man, though I have been doing this for a long while. Second, I'm a lawyer and an academic. There is no such thing as rest. Third, I have actually been working on the materials on the book while in office as director-general. I believe it will be a useful source of reference and a contribution to the evolving jurisprudence in the field.'Quite significantly, it is also in a sense an important documentation of some of the practical issues of importance in copyright law, administration and policy in Nigeria, not just from the eye of a lawyer but also a firsthand regulator and administrator on that saddle. I never really left my habitat; I only took a leave of absence and returned. Every part of my career, whether in the classroom, the courtroom or in governance, is significant.'It is interesting to state that Prof. Adewopo has also taken a chair at the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS) as the pioneer Professor of IP Law in Nigeria. He expresses his thoughts about administration, law practice and academics this way: 'Obviously, the roles are different. As a lawyer, you practise the law very much as it ought to be. As an academic, you profess the law, which is wider and deeper, which again is quite different from being a regulator and public administrator and with all its political dynamics.'All have been a tremendous experience to harness. The last one year or so at the Institute (NIALS) has been such a refreshing resumption for me, culminating in my inaugural lecture, which will be coming up Tuesday, October 9, 2012 by all pleasure and to the glory of God.
Click here to read full news..
