NIGERIA? WE'VE GOT TALENT!!

Disclaimer: The aim of this article is information and enlightenment; please consult a solicitor for individual professional advice.

NIGERIA? WE’VE GOT TALENT!!

Are you an artist, writer, singer, photographer, movie producer or the creator of any intellectual work? Oh, please relax; this is not an ad for a talent hunt. It is a little guide for talent competitions and festivals. If you are contemplating the submission of an entry for some talent competition or festival to go and show everybody just how it’s done, you need to sit up and read carefully. The event could be local or international and the entry in question could be anything protected by copyright: a written or recorded song, a poem or story, a movie or a photograph, a sculpture or a painting.

Under Nigerian and international laws, when you create a work you own the copyright in that work. Very simply, copyright means the exclusive right to exploit the work you’ve created. There are some exceptions, but this generally means that if anyone wants to use that work in any form or to any degree, that person will have to seek permission from you.

Let me clarify something. The work we are discussing here is the one which you have created before the competition and which you are submitting for it. We are not discussing the work that the organisers of the competition sponsored you to create after you have won or after you have reached a certain stage in the competition. That is another thing entirely and it is likely that the conditions surrounding it would differ.

Also, note that the work we are referring to is the work of intellectual property, not the tangible property containing the work. So, don’t be miffed if the organiser doesn’t return the sheet of paper on which you submitted your poem or if you discover that the roasted corn you bought by the roadside was wrapped in it.

Copyright is a transferable right. However, the fact that you are submitting your work does not mean that you have given away your copyright. Nevertheless, when you are entering for a talent hunt or competition or festival, it is not unusual for there to be some form of transfer of your copyright to the organiser, the question to ask is: what kind of transfer is it? What is it, exactly, that you are permitting?

The kind of transfer it is will have certain effects. Any of these effects is alright, as long as you know and assent to the kind of transfer that brought it on.

More often than not, it is impossible to negotiate the terms of the transfer. Usually, you will be given an entry form that contains the terms and conditions of the competition. Chances are that the document will be boring. Even so, always read the fine print. If you do not see a clause that deals with the transfer of rights, please ask or forever hold your peace.

Copyright can be transferred in a number of ways, but, for our purpose here, we’ll concern ourselves with three types of transfers: the non- exclusive transfer, the exclusive transfer and the assignment.

The Non-Exclusive Transfer
Here, the organiser has the right to use your work in specified ways. However, this right given is not exclusive and other persons may use that same right in the same way(s). For instance, if the organisers have a right to copy and publish your work, you may still give the right to other people to copy and publish the same work. This kind of transfer is quite safe for you, but it’s doubtful that the organisers will want it. After all, where’s the fun if other people can do the same thing?

The Exclusive Transfer
In this situation, the organiser has the right to use you work in specified ways for a specified time. Here, this right is exclusive and no one, not even you the creator, will be able to exploit your work in that same way in that territory/area (e.g. in Nigeria). This is quite desirable and it is what organisers would want to go for. Still, you may want to ensure that the time and manner of licence is clearly stated. Imagine if you allow the organisers to use the photograph you’ve created on their website for a year and then five years down the line, it is still there. The good part of this licence is that after the specified time, all the rights concerning the work will revert back to you and you can transfer it to some other person or exploit it by yourself.

The Total Assignment
Here, you transfer all the rights concerning the work to the organisers, forever and ever. No other person, not even you, can exploit the work ever again without permission from the organisers who are now the new copyright owners. Now, if you’ll be paid for it, or if you win the grand prize of the competition, it may be worth your while. I mean, who needs a song when you’ve got ten thousand dollars cash prize or a Prado; you can always sing and record another song. However, what happens when you do not even make the preliminaries and you have already signed to assign all your rights when you were completing the entry form?

It may not be that the organisers are greedy; it could just be that the whole purpose of the competition is for the organisers to own and use the winning entry in exchange for the cash prize. It is when you do not win and all your rights have been transferred that you may feel cheated. The sad thing is that you may not be able to cry foul if it is established that you read and consented to the conditions of the competition.

If you created a work with someone and they want to submit the work for a competition, try to read the terms of that competition, especially the ones dealing with the transfer of copyright. This is because, usually, a licence or an assignment by only one of the owners of a work is deemed to be valid and effective. So, your buddy can effectively transfer the copyright in the story you both created.

Always, always read the fine print.

© 2010 Tinukemi Alabi
Comments/Questions: tinukemi@gmail.com