Overview Of Media, Entertainment Laws In Nigeria

Media and entertainment law are concerned with legal services rendered by the entertainment industry. This involves the legal and business issues in the entertainment industry that arise from the application and interpretation of laws relating to matters such as negotiations of contracts, representation of artistes, immigration, protection of intellectual property, finance, corporate, employment, tax, insurance etc.
Media law covers legislations that regulate the media such as TV, music, art, internet etc. However, it is important to state that there is no definite legal frame work on media and entertainments in Nigeria however, there are other laws supplementary to the activities connected to entertainment and media which will be briefly discussed hereunder
Copyright Act Cap C28 LFN, 2004
Copyright is an exclusive right granted to an originator of creative work to use, publish, produce and reproduce the work for a given period. The copyright Act provides for the protection, transfer, infringement, penalty, the remedy of the creative works of authors and artistic works, song writers, music publishers, cinematograph films, photographers and all sound creative in the media and entertainment industry.
This protection grants the creator the exclusive right to control the use of his creative works and prevent unauthorised person from copying, adapting or passing off a creative work as theirs.
Section 1 of the Act provides that the following listed works in the media and entertainment are eligible for copyright
– Literary works.
– Musical works.
– Artistic works.
– Cinematography films.
– Sound recording.
– Broadcast.
National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) Act 1992.
The Act regulates and governs the broadcasting sector such as Radio and Television of the media industry in Nigeria. The Act establishes the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) in section 1 and empowers the commission to regulate and control the broadcasting industry, among others
It also provides that to operate a radio, sound, Television, cable, satellite station, a license is to be issued and granted by the NBC as empowered by section 9 of the Act.
Trademarks Act 1967
The registration of intellectual property of a trademark seeks to protect a sign, word, mark, logo symbol, pattern or colour that distinguishes one’s brand of goods or services from that of others to make it easily recognisable and relatable to a brand in a commercial market in Nigeria.
A trademark once registered is valid for an initial period of 7 years but is subject to renewal for a subsequent period of 14years from time to time following the provisions of the Act as provided in section 23(1)
Trademark registration is one of the important means of protecting identities of authors and creators in the entertainment industry.
Companies And Allied Matters Act 2020
To commence business operations such as record labels, film production, companies management, etc, in the entertainment industry in Nigeria, one must register a business name, company or partnership with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). The Act establishes the Corporate Affairs Commission which is the government agency established for the purpose of registration and regulation of companies in Nigeria.
The laws that regulate and govern intellectual property in Nigeria form the foundation of the legal frame work for the media and entertainment industry.
The majority of media and entertainment activities are intellectual property related. The media and entertainment industry is one of the fast rising industry in Nigeria which has generated huge revenue for the industry operators and government.

By: Jacob Obinna