DTI names copyright commission members

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has named the members of the Copyright Review Commission (CRC) that will look into the various issues affecting the creative industry.

The commission is part of an anti-piracy campaign that was launched by deputy trade and industry minister Thandi Tobias-Pokolo. It focuses primarily on the music industry, which is plagued by illegal downloads.

Tobias-Pokolo said the difference the commission would make is that, instead of having a scenario where artists themselves play a role in arresting pirate operators, the commission would formally perform that function and ensure the rights of artists were suitably protected.

Retired Supreme Court of Appeal judge Ian Farlam has been appointed chairperson of the CRC.

Other members are: Musa Xulu, academic in the music field; Jean Swanson-Jacobs, policy analyst; Nala Mhlongo, chartered accountant; Tana Pistorius, intellectual property lecturer at the University of SA; and Oupa Lebogo, secretary of the Creative Workers Union of SA.

Tobias-Pokolo said she is confident the CRC would do a sterling job and come up with findings and recommendations that would lead to the resolution of concerns raised in the sector meeting earlier this year.

“I hope the findings and recommendations will result in the improvement of the lives of artists and to the systemic economic growth of the industry and the economy as a whole.”

The CRC work begins in January and will end in June. It will include public hearings, research and benchmark studies, according to the DTI.

Part of its duty is to assess the nature and extent of use of music by mobile content providers, and whether they are paying copyright royalties to rightful owners, says the DTI.

It will also assess all licences issued by ICASA to public and private radio and TV stations in relation to music genres to see if there is compliance with the terms of the licence, and to recommend how enforcement can be improved.

“The campaign is intended to educate and create awareness on the socio-economic evils of piracy, the interventions contained in the existing legal framework, the Copyright Act and related matters, which can assist and empower artists,” says the department.

The campaign was launched in September by the DTI, alongside a meeting with creative industry stakeholders and government officials to formalise the industry.

The Departments of Communication (DOC), Home Affairs, and the police all gave their messages of support and commitment to work in partnership with the DTI in fighting piracy in all its forms.

“We understand piracy to be more than just a crime, but also an immoral act and a cancer that steals the income of hard working artists and producers plus their families; eats away the income that would have been generated in the retail chain of the media content, which may result in the loss of job opportunities; and cuts off the government revenue that would have been generated in the retail chain of the media content,” said deputy minister of home affairs Malusi Gigaba.

Market commentators say illegal music sharing costs the local music industry about R200 million in lost sales a year.

They add that this could be the death knell of the industry if it doesn't find a way of competing aggressively online. Illegal downloads are expected to expand at 15% a year over the next five years.

David Du Plessis, operations director at the Recording Industry of SA, said the organisation's information indicates about 3.6 million songs are unlawfully downloaded in SA every month, which is estimated to cost the recording industry about R18 million a month.

According to the IDC, trimming the piracy rate by 10 percentage points over four years would add an additional 1 181 IT jobs and $819 million to the economy. The IDC's research is, however, based on a 2008 piracy rate of 35%.