ASSESSMENT OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE NIGERIAN COPYRIGHT COMMISSSION TOWARDS CONTROLLING BOOK PIRACY IN NIGERIA

ASSESSMENT OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE NIGERIAN COPYRIGHT COMMISSSION TOWARDS CONTROLLING BOOK PIRACY IN NIGERIA

Abstract:

The study investigated the contributions of the Nigerian Copyright Commission towards controlling book piracy in Nigeria. Five research questions were formulated as thus: what are the causes of book piracy in Nigeria? What types of books are being pirated? What measures are taken by the Nigerian Copyright Commission against book piracy in Nigeria? How effective are the measures taken by the Nigerian Copyright Commission to curb book piracy? What are the effects of book piracy on book business in Nigeria? Survey research method was used for this study. The population of this study is made up of NCC offices in Kano, Anambra and Lagos states and the publishing industries in the three selected states. The population of the study is one hundred and seventeen (117). Purposive sampling was used to select the three states as sample of the study. While considering the manageable number of the subjects of this study; the researcher used the whole population. Two sets of questionnaires were used to collect data for this study. The data collected were presented and analyzed using frequency distribution tables and percentages. The findings showed that: high cost of original books, get- rich-quick syndromes, and scarcity of original books as reasons for the piracy in Nigeria. The findings also revealed that educational books, religious books, trade books, recreational books and reference books are the types of books being pirated. However, educational books are the most pirated books while recreational and reference books are least pirated books. It also discovered that publishers were not satisfied with the effectiveness of copyright enforcement comprises of; raids, arrest and prosecution in controlling the menace of book piracy. It also revealed that there was inadequate public enlightenment campaign through the channels of radio, television, print media, and internet among other means of public awareness creation. The study discovered that book piracy affects investment in publishing business; discourage creativity among Nigerians; increased unemployment in publishing sector; lowers profitability to publishing companies and revenue generation to government. Based on the findings of the study, it is concluded that the measures employed by the commission in the selected states did not meet the needs and aspirations of the publishers as such they were not satisfied with the effectiveness of the measures in controlling book piracy. The research recommends among others that public awareness campaign regarding the importance of copyright should be conducted regularly using all possible means of mass media. Publishing companies should make books available to the people so as to prevent the pirates from using any opportunity resulted by lack of stock at the wake of high demand in the markets. Similarly, copyright enforcement such as raids should be strengthen and conducted regularly in order to expose pirates at their hotbeds.

ASSESSMENT OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE NIGERIAN COPYRIGHT COMMISSSION TOWARDS CONTROLLING BOOK PIRACY IN NIGERIA