SPORTS RIGHTS BODY RAISES ALARM OVER COPYRIGHT LAW CHANGES IN KENYA

 

A coalition of global sports bodies has written an open letter to the Kenyan government, expressing concern about the Copyright Amendment Bill currently before parliament, and its potential impact on the availability of international sports content in Kenya.

The Sports Rights Owner Coalition (SROC) is an alliance of more than 50 international and national sport bodies, representing some of the world’s leading sport codes and competitions – including the English Premier League, the FA Cup, Wimbledon, MotoGP, and the Rugby World Cup.

In the recent letter, signed by Chairman Mark Lichtenstein, the SROC says its members are “extremely concerned” at changes that will be made to Kenya’s Copyright Act if the Copyright Amendment Bill becomes law.

The SROC is particularly worried about proposals to repeal sections 35B, 35C and 35D of the Copyright Act, which allow for take-down notices issued to internet-based service provider platforms which enable content piracy to flourish.

A take-down notice is a widely used remedy employed by copyright owners worldwide, compelling online platforms to rapidly remove content from their websites if it is suspected that the content infringes copyright.

The Kenya Copyright Board (KeCOBO) champion of the Partners Against Piracy (PAP) initiative, has come out in support of the SROC letter.

“Take-down notices are a critical tool for copyright holders and related rights holders to fight digital content piracy by controlling the distribution and economic viability of their work and how it is accessed online,” says Edward Sigei, KeCOBO Executive Director.

“Across the world, they help to safeguard the intellectual property rights of sports rights owners. If rights owners cannot request that pirated sports content is taken down immediately, that will threaten the future of live sports broadcasts in Kenya. Why would international sports media allow sports broadcasts in Kenya, if they have no way of stopping them from being pirated!”

Kenya’s 2019 Copyright Amendment Bill, incorporates principles from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Internet Treaties of 1996, aimed at preventing unauthorised access to and use of creative works. Takedown notices are among these principles and are necessary tools to enforce copyright protections for rights owners and distributors.

If the Amendment Bill is passed into law, Kenya will be out of step with global trends, the average Kenyan will lose out on great sports entertainment.  A further negative consequence of this Amendment Bill passing would be the reputational and economic investment quagmire it would create is jeopardising Kenya’s ability to renew participation in the Africa Growth and Opportunity Agreement (AGOA) program, as one of the additional provisions of renewal requires a demonstrated commitment to copyright protection as a prerequisite to signing. Repealing section 35 of the Copyright Act, would do the exact opposite and threaten investor confidence.

The SROC points out that in Europe, policy makers are strengthening not weakening the effectiveness of take-down notices, particularly regarding live content. New proposals to protect live content more effectively in Europe are expected in the first half of 2022.

“Were the Copyright Amendment Bill to be enacted, it could have devastating consequences for both the Kenyan economy and Kenyan consumers,” says the SROC letter. “Rights holders from sport and other creative industries are extremely unlikely to license their content in a jurisdiction that effectively legitimises piracy. Consumers would therefore be deprived from watching their favourite sports and television shows, and leave Kenya isolated on the global copyright stage.”

The coalition – which includes the English FA, UEFA, the IAAF, and the International Tennis Federation – goes on to ask that the proposed new law be urgently reconsidered “so as not to harm Kenyan consumers and threaten the availability of sports and entertainment content in Kenya.”

SHOWMAX UNVEILS SAFARICOM STREAMING BUNDLE DEALS

 

Showmax and Safaricom have partnered to offer customers two months of streaming for the price of one, while making it easier for Kenyans to pay for and watch their favourite shows on their mobile devices.

 

Showmax bundles the best of African and international entertainment with live sport from SuperSport. In this partnership, customers will be offered data deals bundled with a 60-day Showmax subscription, instead of the usual 30-day subscription. Customers will choose from two mobile bundles:

• Showmax Mobile (60 days) + 1GB Safaricom data for KES 389
• Showmax Pro Mobile (60 days) + 3GB Safaricom data for KES 1299

 

This deal is valid from 1 February to 31 March 2022 and is exclusive to Safaricom customers.

 

As part of its local-first strategy, Showmax tailors the content, apps, packages and partnerships to what is most important to subscribers in different countries.

 

“We’re always looking at ways to make it easier for fans to watch Showmax,” says Nathan Hanley, Chief Expansion Officer – MultiChoice Connected Video. “Our partnership with Safaricom gives our customers the convenience of a single payment for both entertainment and data to make streaming quick and easy while giving them and extra 30 days of watching,” he added.

 

This bundled deal with Safaricom makes it easier for Kenyan streaming fans to pay for Showmax and data via M-Pesa in one go.

 

“As a digital first company, we want to avail affordable devices and data bundles and leverage our extensive 4G coverage to enable Kenyans access a new world of content from the comfort of their phones. Through this partnership, our customers can now enjoy their favourite shows on Showmax using bundles that provide value and convenience,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO – Safaricom PLC.

 

Showmax recently launched the local Original drama series, Single Kiasi, starring Gathoni Mutua, Minne Kariuki and Faith Kibathi as three friends navigating life and love in Nairobi. This comes hot on the heels of Showmax’s first Original Film in Kenya, Baba Twins, a comedy-drama about a young couple who suddenly find themselves expecting, as well as a second season of the Showmax Original and Kalasha Award-winning Crime and Justice, a co-production with Canal+.

 

Showmax includes popular Kenyan content, like the latest seasons of Kina, Njoro wa Uba and Selina, as well as Famous, the drama set in Kenya’s tumultuous music industry produced by Enos Olik and popular local reality shows This Love and Sol Family. 

 

International shows feature the best of HBO, like Succession and Insecure. Kids’ favourites include Paw Patrol, Henry Danger and DC Super Hero Girls, which is first on Showmax. Hollywood blockbusters include Wonder Woman 1984, Miss Juneteenth, and the new Guy Ritchie movie Wrath of Man.

 

Showmax Pro features the AFCON tournament, as well as the English Premier League, Serie A and La Liga matches plus a wide range of live sport from SuperSport including the Winter Olympics, pro boxing, international marathons and IAAF athletics on top of the full Showmax entertainment catalogue.

 

How a customer can access this service

1. Visit www.showmax.com/safaricom or dial *544*20# and select Showmax Deal!
2. Select either a Showmax Mobile (2 months) + 1GB data or Showmax Pro Mobile (2 months) + 3GB data
3. Create an account or sign in using your email address and password
4. Enter your Safaricom mobile phone number and click on next.
5. Enter your M-Pesa PIN on your phone to approve your payment
6. You will receive an SMS confirming payment
7. Start watching

 

Google pivoted from a week of furious lobbying with US Congressional leaders to take on the state of Texas and its allies, in anti-trust suit which it now wants dismissed.

The company which also runs offices in Kenya, filed a motion to dismiss a case filed by a coalition of US states led by Texas that accuses it of colluding with fellow tech major, Facebook, to rig advertisements auctions.

The search and advertising giant which had just failed in its bid to convince Washington not to move forward with anti-trust action against it, says the Texan-led effort is merely a collection of grievances which contains allegations of conduct long since abandoned.

Google's head of economic policy, Adam Cohen, pitched in with a ligitation comms move writing in a blog post that Texas was:

"..making inaccurate and inflammatory allegations that misrepresent Google’s business, products, and motives. Cohen refuted a handful of the claims made  including those surrounding alleged collusion with Facebook.

GOTV SLASHES PRICING FOR LITE PACKAGE

 

Multichoice Kenya office today announced a downward revision of its GOTV Lite packages with a new low price of Sh199/- (US$1.75) per month for the monthly package. Previously, it was Sh265/-.($2.33).

In a statement to newsrooms, the pay-TV operator said the Lite package comes with: 

"A sports highlights channel SuperSport Blitz (channel 30) which offers comprehensive sports highlights from across the globe, up to 22 entertainment channels including TV47 (102), Ramogi TV (101) and Maisha Magic East (Channel 4) which has the best Kenyan shows by top Kenyan stars including local favourites such as Selina, Njoro wa Uba, Our Perfect Wedding, Hullabaloo Estate, Pete, The Turn Up and Pambio Live,  Varshita and Chozi among other award winning shows;"

It also carries Aljazeera news (40); Jim Jam (61) and Akili Kids (63) for children; religious channels Emmanuel TV (82), Hope TV (101), Faith Channel (80) and Islam Channel (81) as well as four audio channels – Classic FM, Milele FM, Radio Maisha and Hope FM and all local free-to-air channels.

The company said current Lite customers can upgrade their package and receive additional content at no cost.

"GOtv customers will until 31 March 2022 enjoy additional benefits if they upgrade their package.  GOtv customers on Lite (Sh.199) can upgrade to GOtv Value (Sh. 550) and will be further upgraded GOtv Plus at no additional cost. Customer who are currently on Value paying Sh.550 will can upgrade to GOtv Plus (Sh.870) and will be further upgraded to GOtv Max at no extra cost."

MICROSOFT'S $69BILLION BID FOR ACTIVISION UP METAVERSE STAKES

 The last time I remember Microsoft putting up this kind of bid, it failed. It was a nearly $45bn bid for Yahoo Inc! which ultimately flopped in the face of unreasonable bargaining by then CEO Jerry Yang. It was fortuitous because Yahoo later devalued quickly under the relentless competition of newer nimble tech firms and was bought at a fraction of that amount. Microsoft must have sighed with relief.

The tech major, is now back to buying, announcing yesterday that it has placed a US$69.5bn bid for video game maker Activision Blizzard. 

This would vault Microsoft, maker of the Xbox gaming console, into the top 3 of the multibillion dollar gaming industry along with giants like Sony and EA (Electronic Arts).

Observers are first pointing to the mobile gaming scene which has been growing by leaps and bounds. Microsoft is weak here and the catalague it will acquire from Activision will launch it into relevance.

Others however are focused on the growing focus on Virtual Reality and the Metaverse. Seen as a virtual reality world where people can interact and work virtually, the metaverse has also become the point of focus for tech major, Facebook, now rebranded Meta, as well as a host of other technology companies.

Microsoft is betting on the existence of Sony and EA Sports to pass regulators' approval by pointing to a competitive landscape.

TELCOS PLOT TO SCUTTLE PIRACY BUSTING COPYRIGHT LAW

Kenyan telecommunications operators are pushing amendments to the Copyright Act, that would allow their internet users to continue accessing pirated content with no liability to the internet service provider(ISP).

Specifically, Sections 35B, 35C, and 35D of the Copyright Act, 2019, which importantly, require ISPs to remove or block pirated content from their networks upon notice.

In 2019, amendments were made to the Copyright Act to bring it up to international standards. One of the far reaching additions was the definition of an Internet Service Provider, and the provision for criminal breach of copyright over the internet using various technologies and platforms to illegally sell or share such protected material.

Section 35B and 35D provide for the procedure that the network or platform should follow to take down or prevent access to copyrighted material upon notice by the owner or rights holder. 35D grants the injured party to go to the High Court to enforce the take-down of the said content.

As a result, ISPs can now be held liable if people use their networks to access or to download or distribute copyrighted material illegally.

While this was a first in Copyright law for African countries, the issue of ISP liability has been well established in other countries most notably the US where the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) provides them with a way out, the so-called safe harbor, if they were not aware of the infringement taking place on their networks, but acted within 48 hours to block access or bring down offending content, to escape liability.

According to Partners Against Piracy (PAP), an international advocacy group for content creators and creatives who hold intellectual property rights, Kenya is first among several African countries with widespread content piracy over the internet.

A survey of one popular pirated content site showed a total of 92 million visits from Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria and Tanzania.

"With seven million visits, visits from IP addresses in Kenya represented the highest number of users of pirated content among the African territories identified during the piracy survey. With five million visits, South Africa came in second. Ghana had around 2,4 million, Nigeria had 2,3 million, and Tanzania 626 694."

Observers now point to telecom operators as the likely push behind the efforts to amend and water down the intermediary liability clauses in the Copyright Act.

Telcos have been against the enforcement of the liability clauses and have out rightly ignored takedown notices issued to them by owners of content or rights holders when content is illegally streamed on their networks

This however, PAP notes, leads to thousands of content creators exposed to piracy with an estimated Sh14.3bn lost in earnings to creatives.

PAP has asked parliament not to repeal the said sections as it threatens content creators intellectual property rights and infringe on their right to earn a livelihood.

CONTENT PRODUCERS RAISE ALARM OVER MOVE TO LIFT COPYRIGHT PROTECTIONS

Partners Against Piracy (PAP) has issued a strong protest against plans to amend the Copyright Act, 2019, that will strike out key protection clauses for content creators and rights holders.

The advocacy group, made up of local Kenyan and international artistes, producers, writers among others raised issue with the proposed Copyright (Amendment) Bill, 2021 that is sponsored by Gladys Wanga, a member of the Kenyan parliament.

The proposed Bill will see the deletion of Sections 35B, 35C, and 35D that among others provisions make telecom providers liable for pirated content being streamed on their networks by their users.

To protect the intellectual property rights of the content creators or those licensed to broadcast the content, the Copyright Act requires telcos and other internet service providers (ISPs) to take down or block such content from their networks upon receipt of a takedown notice by the rights holders.

"Partners Against Piracy appeals to Honourable Wanga and the Twelfth Parliament, to please Remove the Repeal of Sections 35B, 35C and 35D from the Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2021, to Avoid further Losses to the Creative Industry and the Government," a statement read

"After all, the Creative Industry has Suffered for Decades from the Unfair Competition from Piracy, so now Deserves better Protection, especially to Recover from COVID-19."

The issue of ISP liability has been well established in other countries most notably the US where the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) provides them with a way out, the so-called safe harbor, if they were not aware of the infringement taking place on their networks, but acted within 48 hours to block access or bring down offending content, to escape liability.

In Kenya, this is likely to take a more consequential path once social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and WhatsApp are brought under the radar.

In the US and Europe, they also fall under the same liability framework as ISPs and are required to obey take-down notices as well.

Jurisprudence abroad such as that coming from European Court of Justice has already established that certain activities such as online streaming fall under communications to the public and when there is unauthorized reproduction or rebroadcasting of the same, copyright infringement can be found.

Both the US and Europe do online broadcasts/streams as well as coverage of big live sporting events such as Premier League soccer, Formula 1, La Liga, Athletics, and so on.

There is concern that this right of communication to the public is not sufficiently explained and thus, insufficiently protected in Kenyan law.

In Europe for instance, notorious site ThePirateBay, has been found liable for violating copyright even if it does not post the content itself, as it has argued. But the ECJ has found that the site facilitates the unauthorized sharing and distribution of copyrighted content and thus should be held responsible.

"Instead of Repealing these important Provisions, our Parliament should rather consider Changes to make the Law clearer and more effective, in full co-operation with the ISPs, thus ensuring the Sustainability of the Kenya Creative Industry and the Safety of our Country from such Crimes," PAP said.