Chola Makgamathe
Throughout the globe creative-content piracy is rising – particularly since the onset of Covid-19 lockdowns, which forced many people to stay home, resulting in a surge in demand for TV, film entertainment, and music.
According to a recent report published by MUSO, a technology company providing anti-piracy and market analytics, digital content piracy has increased with a rise of 40% for film piracy. The report shows that while the world was under locked due to the Covid-19 pandemic, film piracy increased by 41% in the USA, 43% in the UK, 50% in Spain, 62% in India and 66% in Italy when compared with the final week in February, before most countries went into lockdown.
While technology kept us together and entertained at the height of the pandemic, we have also seen the development of more enhanced mobile devices, and tech tools that can be used for sophisticated cyber piracy.
In many African countries and elsewhere in the world, intellectual property has been regarded as an exceptional subject for a specific class of people in our societies. However, the fact of the matter is that the protection of intellectual property rights has a positive impact towards everybody hence we all have a part to play to fight against piracy.
Due to a lack of information and sometimes challenging socio-economic conditions, some consumers may not be aware that downloading their favourite song without purchasing it is legal or how illegally streaming their favourite shows like The River or Gomora affects the actor’s pockets severely. This a sharp indicator that piracy is not a 'victimless crime' as many assume.
While the importance of legislation such as the stalled Copyright Amendment Bill and willing law enforcement cannot be understated, the former process cannot be done in a vacuum that overlooks the importance of educating consumers on piracy, the different forms it can take, and its economic growth and development in Africa.
In Kenya for example, The Kenya Copyright Board (KECOBO) successfully carries multifaceted initiatives that are aimed at creating public awareness, promote the enforcement of copyright laws, and continues to educate communities on matters of copyright and related rights.
Therefore, it is crucial for the various stakeholders that are committed to curbing piracy to actively embark in an intensive consumer centred approach aimed at educating the public, especially the youth on the negative impact of piracy on the livelihoods of content creators.
We must therefore make use of the available resources to ensure that the process of implementing effective and efficient enforcement of these legislations occurs in tandem with the process of empowering the communities for the legislation to be understood and adhered to and most importantly equipping them with the tools to condemn those around them who are engaged in piracy.
It is without question that piracy has negative effects on the economy and the ability for creative professionals to earn a living. Left unchecked, the theft of content will severely harm investor confidence, tax revenue, and can also affect trade opportunities, effectively annihilating an economy that is already ailing.
The gears, however, have started turning; organisations such as Partners Against Piracy (PAP), a Pan-African campaign to protect the livelihoods of the thousands of content creators through raising awareness, mobilising stakeholders, and galvanising the public on the dangers of piracy is gaining traction.
While it is to acknowledge legalisation, it can only be respected when it is understood. That is why key stakeholders such as the Department of Justice and Correctional Services, business, civil society, and other NGOs need to ensure that they create sufficient, digestible, informative, and educational material in the form of workshops, pamphlets, and roundtable discussion aimed at different age groups on piracy and how it can be prevented.
To preserve African content everyone needs to ensure that local artists are nurtured, protected, encouraged, and motivated. One of the ways to do this is by joining forces as society to protect their livelihoods and overtly condemning piracy in all its forms.
