Overview
IntroductionThe theme for World Intellectual Property Day, 2025, was “Feel the Beat of IP” aimed at creating awareness around the valuable role of music in society and the need for creators and all relevant stakeholders in the industry to be adequately protected and compensated for their works. In line with aims of the theme of the World Intellectual Property Day, and in commemorating this year’s edition World Music Day, we will analyse the recently released Collective Management Regulations, 2025 (the “Regulations”) by the Nigerian Copyright Commission (the “NCC”) and its potential impact on securing the rights of music owners and rights holders in Nigeria.
The Collective Management Regulations, 2025Less than two years since the Copyright Act, 2022 (the “Act”) was signed into law, the NCC exercised its powers under the Act to issue regulations that will further the aims and objectives of the Act by promulgating the Regulations on Tuesday, 28th January 2025. The Regulations, which revoked the Copyright (Collective Management Organisations) Regulations, 2007, aim to definitively outline a guide to copyright owners, works users, relevant stakeholders, and the public on registration, membership, management and obligations of Collective Management Organisations (“CMO” or “Organisation”).
A CMO is an organisation or association of copyright holders and owners that aims to streamline the administration of copyright works to ensure more efficiency in the granting of licenses to users and the collection of revenue for the rights holders. CMOs are an essential part of the music industry. Music is licensed, used and played consistently and repeatedly in different ways, in public spaces, events, parties, bars, restaurants, gyms, streaming platforms, digital downloads, and so on. With this much usage, rights owners, including song writers, composers, producers, instrumentalists, singers, vocalists, performers, publishers and record labels, carry a heavy burden to identify and track use and generated revenue. CMOs exist to perform these cumbersome tasks on behalf of rights holders.
The major duties of CMOs are to: Monitor the exploitation of the rights entrusted to it and the use of works associated with those rights. Negotiate and grant copyright licences on behalf of copyright owners. These licences serve to grant permission to play music publicly in all forms. Collect and distribute royalties which accrue from the use of copyright works – This would include mechanical, performance and other publishing royalties for rights holders in musical compositions and neighbouring rights royalties to rights holders in the sound recordings. Assist their members to enforce their rights under the Copyright Act. Provide social, cultural and educational services for the benefit of its members
