Most musicians in the Ugandan music industry do not have copyright ownership of their songs, as stated by the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC). During a meeting with the Information, Communication Technology, and National Guidance Committee of Parliament on Tuesday, October 24, Waiswa Abudu Sallam, the head of legal affairs at UCC, revealed that even well-known musicians, who one would expect to possess copyrights to their songs, have, in fact, sold these rights to intermediaries.
Sallam explained, “The musicians are just the face of the songs. Most of them sell the rights to their songs to record companies and aggregators.” He emphasized that the challenges in the music industry are primarily structural.
Dr. Waiswa also emphasized that musicians need to organize themselves, regardless of potential amendments to copyright laws, in order to realize commercial benefits from their music within the present state of the industry. He pointed out that the informality within the sector complicates issues related to determining the value of a musician’s art.
He underscored the necessity of educating musicians about copyright and patent matters, encouraging them to refrain from selling their copyrights to middlemen and instead utilize the law to fully profit from their artistic endeavors. Waiswa added that the government is willing to support musicians, but the primary responsibility for safeguarding their work rests with the artists themselves.
Dr. Chris Baryomunsi, the Minister for ICT and National Guidance, responded to a petition from the Uganda National Musicians Federation and explained that existing laws already address piracy and aspects related to patent and copyright rights. He urged musicians to make use of these laws to secure full benefits from their music production, emphasizing a need for greater legal literacy among artists.
Dr. Baryomunsi disclosed that efforts are underway to review the law to address the concerns raised by musicians. The musicians had petitioned Parliament, seeking swift amendments to the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act of 2006 to protect their intellectual property rights from infringement.
According to their petition, the distribution of revenue collected from call-back tunes currently disadvantages the artists, with a significant portion of the revenue going to telecom companies rather than the artists who should be the primary beneficiaries. The musicians proposed a revised fee structure for caller tunes, with 60 percent of the revenue allocated to the artist, while the remaining 40 percent would be shared between the government and telecom companies.
