BY BOLARINWA AKANDE
In its renewed effort at curbing the rising level of commercial piracy of Pay TV signals, MultiChoice has urged individuals or entities that use DStv services for public use to acquire commercial license in order to avoid litigation.
It would be recalled that MultiChoice gave commercial pirates the opportunity to convert to legal commercial broadcast in 2013, but it appears many still live in violation of the laws guiding pay TV operations in Nigeria.
“We want these subscribers to stay on the right side of the law, and those who are yet to convert are infringing on the copyright laws of Nigeria and will face appropriate penalties,” said Caroline Oghuma, PR Manager, DStv.
Oghuma, who explained that MultiChoice is working in association with the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) to stem the rising trend in commercial piracy, stated that early this year, officials of the NCC Lagos Zonal Office issued a 14-day deadline for hotels to obtain the appropriate commercial licenses for the broadcast of DStv channels in their hotels. “We are happy that some hotel owners have complied by legalizing their subscriptions. However, we urge those who have not complied to do so,” she said.
The Commission last year launched an Amnesty Campaign to create awareness on broadcast piracy. Oghuma highlighted that the campaign will move to the 2nd phase which will involve the copyright audit of outlets using DStv in public and sanctioning of infringing users.
MultiChoice Nigeria in conjunction with the NCC is currently battling four types of piracy. These include; Cable Piracy, Re-broadcasting Piracy, Commercial Piracy and Circumvention Piracy.