Why govt has proposed a 20-year cap on music copyright deals

Why govt has proposed a 20-year cap on music copyright deals

By Dedan Kimathi

Artist contracts come in many forms, but few are as binding as the exclusive recording contract. Under such a deal, the artist pledges allegiance to a single label, recording and performing only under its banner for the duration of the agreement.

Often, the terms do not just claim songs created during that period but sometimes extend to works produced earlier. In industry slang, the label seizes the masters.

For those unfamiliar, masters refer to the original recordings of a song.

With the masters locked away, the creator loses not only ownership but also creative control. This grievance once drove George Michael to drag Sony to court in 1992, albeit unsuccessfully. From that point, the label calls the shots, dictating how, when, and where the music is used and distributed.

The key takeaway is that these deals often come with up-front payments and a handful of privileges, enough to persuade many Ugandan artists who cannot imagine surviving without a steady revenue stream from copyright royalties.

Even with many visible red flags, artists still put pen to paper.

Then, when stardom arrives, the downsides become painfully clear.

By that stage, it is often too late. Even when artists want out, managers, fully aware of the true value of the masters, hold on to them.

Copyright reversion

To address this problem, the Government proposes that copyright revert to the creator after twenty years.

This provision is contained in the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights (Amendment) Bill, tabled in the House in May this year by Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Norbert Mao.

The Bill is now under scrutiny by the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, chaired by Bukhooli North MP Stephen Bakka Mugabi (NRM).

At the core, the movers seek to achieve this by inserting Sections 13A and 13B into the principal law.

Section 13A (1) states: “Subject to the contract of assignment, licence or transfer, the assignment, licence or transfer of economic rights in a copyright shall be valid for a period not exceeding twenty years from the date of the assignment, licence or transfer.”

The reversion of an assignment, licence or transfer may be effected at any time during the five years prior to the expiry of the twenty years, something Attorney General (AG) Kiryowa Kiwanuka described as a game changer during an interaction with the committee on Thursday, 7 August 2025.

“What we have put is that you cannot enter into a contract with a singer for forty years. If you want, there is an upper cap. It must not be more than twenty years. So you must go back to the singer, and that is the same thing with Kafeero’s songs,” Kiryowa stated.

“Right now, the copyrights exist. Those CMO (Collective Management Organisations) are supposed to enforce the rights that were given by Kafeero in his songs all these years, he should be getting benefits from those songs up till today. So that is what we are hoping that this law would give,” he said.

Perpetuity

According to Kiryowa Kiwanuka, copyright can only be perpetually held by the creator.

“These are only user rights. But the person who sang the song, forever and ever, that property belongs to him. So, the singer is the mailo owner and the user is the leaseholder,” he further explained.

URSB speaks out

While presenting, Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) Registrar General Mercy Kainobwisho called for an amendment to Clause Six of the Bill.

She argued that, as the Bill stands, reversion of copyright is subject to the contract of assignment, licence or transfer.

She proposed deleting the phrase “subject to the contract of assignment, licence or transfer”.

“This implies that if the contract provides for a period longer than twenty years, the provision will be rendered inoperative and will defeat the spirit of the amendment,” Kainobwisho argued.

Business dynamics

However, Sulaiman Kamulegeya, alias KS Alpha, the hitmaker behind old-school ragga classics such as Selector and Waistline (a collaboration with Jamaican duo Tanto Metro and Devonte), says the proposal is tricky.

In some cases, he argues, real returns on investment only come after twenty years, a timeline that could discourage long-term investors.

This view is shared by Charles Batambuze, the executive director of the Uganda Reproduction Rights Organisation (URRO), who says such matters can be better handled within contracts.

He adds that including them in the principal law would be disastrous to the under-invested sector.

“For music, we discovered that actually the older the music catalogue grows, the more profitable it becomes. So, if we put a provision that allows reversion and yet the catalogue is growing old and people are loving it more and more... actually, at the time when the investor would start earning more, that is when you are depriving them,” Batambuze pointed out.

“Certain works, such as film and television productions, often have extended licensing cycles with international markets and syndicate arrangements spanning over 20 years. Ideally, this provision would make our industries in Uganda unattractive to investors and yet as a sector we have been crying that we have few people bringing in money,” he reiterated.

Stakeholder speaks out

Chipping in, James Wasula, the executive director of Afrigo Band, backed this position.

“Actually, reversion has a tendency of depriving the copyright owner maximum exploitation of the work. And it contradicts the spirit of contract. Because, if the law is that rigid that after twenty years you take back the rights... the issue therefore is even before I recoup my investment, I lose the right to work that I have paid to produce,” Wasula warned.

“So we strongly believe that this article is not productive in as far as creating the environment for the industry to be profitable to the copyright owners. So we propose that it be expunged from the amendment,” he retorted.

Reforms in CMOs

Besides establishing an independent body to handle copyright matters, musician-turned-politician Hillary Kiyaga of Double Bed Mazongoto fame wants Collective Management Organisations to copy the Kenyan model.

The Mawokota North NUP MP says: “Collective management organisations play a vital role in the corporate management by acting as intermediaries between the corporate holders and users of copyrighted works.”

“They (CMOs) simplify the process of licensing and loyalty collection, ensuring creators are fairly compensated while making it easier for users to access and utilise creative content. In simple terms, honourable chair, the CMOs are the brokers in the supply chain of copyrighted works,” he added.

In Kenya, Kiyaga said, the Music Copyright Society of Kenya handles the collection and distribution of royalties for musical works.

The Kenya Association of Music Producers manages the rights of music producers, while the Performers Rights Society of Kenya safeguards the rights of performers, artists and musicians.

In Uganda, however, everything is lumped under one roof.