OKOROJI LAUDS LONDON POLICE OVER INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY UNIT

Chairman of Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON), Chief Tony Okoroji has commended City of London Police for setting up Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) to protect the creative industries from online organized crime. Okoroji described the development as noble adding that he hopes to see something similar in Nigeria.

“This is a very noble idea and the kind we expect to see in Nigeria soon. I commend the forward-thinking approach of the London Police and I am certain Nigeria can borrow a leaf from this action. The important role intellectual property plays in our lives and in the progress of a nation’s economy can never be over emphasized.

“Today, we live in a world driven by innovation, all of which draws from intellectual property and need to be protected if we must continue to enjoy the ease and value they add to our lives. I do not know of any successful business anywhere in the world which doesn’t thrive on intellectual property and so when we push for the defense of IP, we are pushing for a stronger economy for Nigeria,” he said.

Okoriji said COSON just signed a landmark reciprocal representation agreement with the London based PRS for music adding that this makes Nigerian musicians beneficiaries of this development”.

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It will be recalled that COSON in conjunction with the Nigerian Music Industry Coalition recently organized the first ever Digital Music Licensing Summit aimed at taking urgent steps to align the music industry in Nigeria with developments in other parts of the developed world in the digital space.