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Where billions go for a song.
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Bad Business: Artiste Poxi Presha and his vigilante group
seize counterfeit cass |
Singers and producers facing the music as 90 per cent of all
recordings sold in Kenya are pirated by cartels in India,
Pakistan, Dubai and Uganda, says World Bank report.
As night falls, the man
from River Road packs his wares in a plastic bag, deftly crosses
the busy streets and enters one of a string of bars in the heart
of Nairobi. His eyes dart from table to table, searching for a
willing buyer. He is also alert for any sign of trouble.
Satisfied that all is
well, he raises his voice: "Two for the price of one. Wide
selection here, both local and international. Cassettes, compact
disks, video tapes, name it..."
He says this in
sing-song. Like the pirated music that he sells, it is his
stock-in-trade. He is one among hundreds of hawkers in other bars,
open-air markets, shops and streets in Kenya.
Almost 90 per cent of
all music sold in the country is pirated, says a World Bank
report.
While artistes in other
African countries sell 50,000 to 200,000 cassettes of a new
release, those in Kenya barely manage 5,000 pieces. Compact discs
fare even worse. "Just about 500 units are sold," says John
Andrews of AI Records, a major distributor.
In six months, there
might not be a single genuine album on sale in Kenya, which is
reportedly worst hit in Africa alongside Nigeria.
Independent researchers
say live performances offer more financial gain to local artistes
than recorded material do. The World Bank report, "Value Chain
Analysis of Kenya's Music Industry," says that an artiste needs
only six live shows a year to earn more than the total sales of
his recorded music.
"Piracy is so rampant in
Kenya that people do not know any more what is legitimate," says
Andrews. He adds that his company has suffered a drastic reduction
in business. "We are doing less than one-tenth of the business we
did in 1985. It is that bad."
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Bad Business: Artiste Poxi Presha and his vigilante group
seize counterfeit cassettes and recording equipment. |
The World Bank report was prepared by Global Development
Solutions LLC. But Andrews puts the figure of pirated music at 98
per cent.
"Top Kenyan musicians
should be millionaires, but they are not. You can see it for
yourself," he says.
As piracy takes a toll
on local music, international stakeholders are threatening drastic
action unless the Government acts.
Jennifer Shamalla,
general manager of the Music Copyright Society of Kenya, says: "It
has been recommended by the International Intellectual Property
Alliance that Kenya should be placed on the watch list."
But Andrews notes: "Our
problem is lack of implementation by the Government. There is a
gazetted copyright board but it has never sat since it was
constituted. How can the Copyright Act be useful?"
He is not the only one
pointing fingers at the authorities. Prechard Pouka Olang', the
director general of Talent Works and Rights Enforcement Ltd, says
the copyright board is ineffective.
Olang', popularly called
Poxi Presha, says the board was instituted in July 2003 but its
agenda has not been taken seriously. "For instance, a copyright
registration form should be signed by the board's executive
director. Yet the board has never had an executive director. It is
impossible to effect such requirement. Also, how can one contest
infringement on a copyright in court?"
An officer at the
copyright office at the Attorney-General's chambers admits the
board has been docile. He says steps are being taken to rectify
this.
"Our seeming dormancy is
borne by limited financial provisions. This year, we received Sh5
million from the Treasury to carry out a number of activities.
Proposals have also been made that senior officers of the board
sign copyright documents in the absence of an executive director,"
he says.
Poxi Presha is
vigorously fighting piracy through his vigilante organization.
After playing a leading part in popularizing local rap in the 90s,
he is identifying distribution networks of pirates and, with the
help of the police, conducting covert raids.
He says there are
illegal reproduction outfits in River Road, Parklands and
Kariobangi areas of Nairobi. Roof ceilings in shops and hotels,
and false walls in music outlets, are used to hide volumes of
pirated music.
Olang' recalls a raid on
a shop in Nairobi where they discovered that a shelf containing
genuine music was a door to a second shelf holding pirated
cassettes and CDs.
This frustrates the war
on piracy. "Some people in legitimate business are stocking
counterfeits," explains Shamalla. Basements of buildings in Ngara
estate are us ed to conduct illegal trade.
The World Bank report
lists Ngara and River Road as the trouble spots. It also mentions
Westlands and South "C" in Nairobi as key distribution points.
Nakuru, Mombasa, Eldoret
and Kisumu are also said to be active towns. From here, bogus
music is sold to consumers in pubs, bus termini, barber shops and
even butcheries. Bus termini are the most lucrative.
About 630 bus stops in
Kenya, each with 10 to 50 hawkers, sell pirated music. The number
of street hawkers distributing counterfeits range from 6,300 to
31,500. They are informally organised and each knows his or her
territory.
Major entry points for
pirated music are Malaba – from Uganda – and Mombasa and Dar es
Salaam. The latter get large consignments from Pakistan, India and
Dubai though panya (illegal) routes for distribution
locally. The three Asian countries are black-listed as the most
notorious duplication points.
Andrews says: "The
majority of pirated music in Kenya comes from Pakistan. These are
not small-time duplicators. We are talking about main pressing
plants that will run 5,000 to 20,000 copies of stolen music."
In April this year, the
International Federation of the Phonographic Industry closed down
six illegal plants in Pakistan. Piracy levels went down, but only
for a while. "It seems like the pirates have found new channels
and are back in business," says Andrews.
Closer to home, the
report takes issue with Uganda. It names Lucine, Salie and
Kasiwukira studios as major points of counterfeit music that ends
up in Kenya.
Both MSCK and AI Records
say Uganda is a source of illegally reproduced albums that are
crippling Kenya's music industry. "Uganda has weaker controls on
pirated music," says Andrews. It is a fertile ground for
duplication of new releases.
There is also a range of
small-time Kenyans who copy music at home or in informal settings.
"It is not possible to estimate the volume of this business, but
it is relatively small when compared to the more organized
reproduction and distribution system of music into Kenya from
Uganda," says the World Bank report.
Olang says these
informal outfits in Nairobi and Mombasa can reproduce up to 70,000
copies a night. "They have towers of equipment to do this. Their
go downs can be compared to vegetable markets. Hundreds of people
swam these places every morning to collect stocks."
Unconfirmed reports say
thieves have a way of laying their hands on a master copy of a new
release before it hits the market. "These copies are sold to
pirates through the back door soon after a recording," says
Andrews.
They are then taken to
pirates in Uganda and Asia. Large volumes of fake copies are
aggressively channeled through organised networks, denying
artistes and the Government large sums of revenue.
Some artistes may
inadvertently give master copies of their productions to
unscrupulous people, presumably for promotion purposes.
The third method of
reproducing music is quite obvious, but it works well for pirates.
They quickly buy a genuine copy of a new release and send it to
Pakistan, Malaysia, China or Singapore for reproduction.
"In two to four weeks,
pirated copies are available in Nairobi and elsewhere," says the
World Bank document.
It adds that the three
Ugandan companies send pirated music to at least eight
distribution centres in Kenya. Each of these centres have
distributors "who channel the music to sub-distributors".
Estimates by the MCSK
have it that more than 29 million pirated cassettes and CDs flow
through Kenya annually, generating approximately Sh5 billion. Part
of the proceeds is channelled to other illegal activity like drug
trafficking and crime.
Piracy stifles Kenya's
economy. Statistics from the World Bank say it accounts for
Sh1.3-5 billion in lost retail revenue to artistes, and Sh204-760
million in lost taxes to the Government annually. Lost royalty is
put at Sh140 million a year.
Andrews says this
plunder can be stopped tomorrow if administration of the Copyright
Act was moved from the A-G's chambers to the Ministry of Trade and
Industry. "The trade minister is willing to help," he says.
The Copyright Office
says efforts are being made to give the board autonomy, but this
may take some time as money will be required.
Article by Elly Wamari.
Sources: Nation Newspapers -
NationMedia.com
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