World Intellectual Property Day: IP, music, feel the beat

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OPINION

By Hilda Wamono (Lawyer)

Like salt, a language common to humankind is music!

Hi music lovers. How can you define music? Is it a language? Joy? or some kind of relief?  Some of us would describe it as life, and others as a way of expression.

We listen to music at home and in banks, dance to it in church, bars, functions, play it in businesses, set it as caller tunes or ringtones, among others. As music is part of us, how have we appreciated the process and innovation invested in creating this music?

Let's explore key questions that highlight music's importance and IP rights in Uganda.

1. Who is involved in creating music, and what rights do they have in the music?
2. What challenges do music creators face in Uganda, and what are the possible solutions?
3. How can a creator of music protect their rights in Uganda and abroad?
4. Why is it important for Uganda to celebrate this year's WIPO day?

In Uganda, music is a protected subject matter under the Copyrights and Neighbouring Rights Act and regulated by the URSB.

1. Who is involved in creating music, and what rights do they have in the music

There are various persons involved in creating music, such as the author, director, performer and producer. They have different roles and particular rights attached to the music. These are discussed below;

1. Author

This is a natural person who labours to write the song. The author may be one or two persons. The song must be original and may be inspired by historical, natural, religious, current, cultural events, an imaginary or personal experience, etc. To be precise, there is a lot of inspiration and creativity involved in creating a music masterpiece.

The author has both moral and economic rights. The moral rights include a right to be acknowledged or mentioned, a right to claim authorship and bring an action. The economic rights of the author include the right to publish, distribute, perform, broadcast, communicate it to the public, make a derivative work, rent or sell the music, among others.

The rights of the other players in music emanate from the author's rights.

2. The performer.

The performer has neighbouring rights. A performer is a person who fulfils the creation of the musical piece, for example, if ‘X’ wrote a song and ‘Y’ sang it, ‘Y’ is the performer of the song.

The performer has the right to fix their live performance on a physical medium, broadcast or communicate the music to the public, reproduce the fixation, distribute the fixation, rent the fixation, among others.

2. Director

The director has neighbouring rights. He/she has the right to be identified as a director, a right to have their name mentioned.

3. Producers. These also have neighbouring rights.

The producer has the right to reproduce sound recordings, distribute or make available the work to the public, among others.

2. What challenges do music creators face in Uganda, and what are the possible solutions?

a) Challenges

Rampant piracy and infringement- unauthorised use, reproduction, and distribution of music online deprive creators of fair compensation, undermining their livelihoods.

Limited awareness. Creators and consumers lack a basic understanding of IP rights, leading to infringement, exploitation, and economic loss.

Inadequate enforcement. Weak enforcement mechanisms enable widespread illegal use, impacting revenue and creator benefits.

Financial constraints. Limited access to funding, resources, and mentorship hinders creators' ability to produce high-quality work.

b) Possible solutions.

Embracing technology. Leverage emerging technologies to curb online piracy.

Education and awareness. Promote IP literacy among creators, consumers, and law enforcement to reduce infringement and support innovation.

Strengthening enforcement. Improve IP law enforcement to protect creators' rights, deter piracy, and foster industry growth.

Supporting creators. Provide resources, funding, partnerships, and mentorship programs to empower creators and drive industry growth.

3. How can the creator of music protect their rights in Uganda and abroad?

The Copyrights and Neighbouring Rights Act provides for various ways through which music rights can be protected.

1. The author can register their copyright in the song with the registrar of copyrights.
2. Engage collective management societies such as the UPRS in Uganda and join an international collective management society abroad to ensure proper compensation.
3. In infringement, a rights holder in music has the power to institute an action.

NB: The rights holders have the power to assign, sale and license their music.

4) Why it is important for Uganda to celebrate this year's WIPO day?

Music as a universal language is a way of creative expression, and IP rights play a significant role in supporting its creation.

Encouraging fair compensation. By upholding and raising awareness of IP rights in music, creators and innovators are fairly compensated in Uganda.

Promotes and exposes Ugandan culture and innovation on the global scene.

Supporting IP rights in music encourages cross-industry connections, enabling creative synergies and innovation across sectors that fuel economic growth.

World IP Day raises awareness about the importance of the protection of IP rights in music and challenges faced by creators and innovators in the music industry.

In recognition of the challenges, the day unifies stakeholders to craft solutions that address challenges in the music industry.

Recognise and celebrate the contributions of creators, innovators and entrepreneurs who push the boundaries of innovation and creativity to make music that brings people together and inspires a more innovative future.

In conclusion, protecting IP rights in music promotes creativity, innovation, and fair compensation, empowering Uganda's music industry to thrive.

The writer is a lawyer