By Simpson Global Media News Desk
Nigeria is moving towards a more coordinated national response to online piracy, with the Federal Government, the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), technology companies, telecommunications operators and other stakeholders examining how to protect creative works and the digital infrastructure through which they are distributed.
The latest push emerged from a National Seminar on Copyright, Cybersecurity and Nigeria’s Creative and Digital Economy held in Abuja on Monday, September 28, 2026. The seminar, organised by the Nigerian Copyright Commission, was themed “Protecting Nigeria’s Creative Economy and Digital Infrastructure Against Online Piracy.”
At the centre of the discussions was a recognition that piracy has changed significantly as music, films, books, broadcasts and other creative products have moved from physical distribution into an increasingly digital marketplace.
Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, called for a broad coalition involving copyright regulators, security and law-enforcement agencies, telecommunications companies, internet service providers, digital platforms, broadcasters, payment gateways, domain registries and copyright owners.
Fagbemi said online piracy could no longer be treated solely as a conventional copyright-enforcement issue because illegal distribution increasingly intersects with cybersecurity, e-commerce vulnerabilities and the security of digital infrastructure.
The government’s proposed response includes an Abuja Copyright Action Plan, intended to establish clearer institutional responsibilities, improve intelligence sharing and create procedures for faster and lawful action against websites and digital services distributing infringing material.
The development is significant for Nigeria’s entertainment industry because the country’s creative economy has become increasingly dependent on digital platforms for production, promotion, distribution and monetisation.
At the same time, the shift to digital consumption has made it possible for copyrighted works to be copied, modified and distributed across jurisdictions at a speed that traditional enforcement mechanisms were not designed to handle.
From Physical Piracy to Digital Networks
For decades, piracy in Nigeria was commonly associated with physical copies of films, music, books and other creative works.
Counterfeit CDs and DVDs were once a familiar feature of the entertainment market. Books could be reproduced without authorisation. Films could be copied and sold without the consent of producers or rights owners.
Digital technology has changed that environment.
Today, a film can be uploaded to an unauthorised platform and made available to viewers in different countries without the need for a physical distribution network. A music recording can be copied and redistributed through websites, applications or messaging channels. A television programme can be captured and streamed without permission.
The scale and speed of that activity create a different enforcement challenge.
At the Abuja seminar, Fagbemi said infringing content could be reproduced, modified and distributed globally within seconds while the people responsible, their technical infrastructure and their financial proceeds could be spread across different jurisdictions.
That cross-border element is one reason Nigerian authorities are looking beyond the traditional relationship between copyright agencies and rights holders.
A platform hosting infringing material may operate outside Nigeria. Its domain may be registered in another country. Its servers may be located elsewhere. Advertising revenue may come from international companies, while users accessing the content may be located across several countries.
This makes enforcement dependent on cooperation between institutions that do not traditionally operate as part of the same copyright system.
The government is therefore seeking a framework in which copyright enforcement, cybersecurity, telecommunications regulation, digital platforms and financial channels can work together.
Abuja Copyright Action Plan
One of the principal proposed outcomes of the September 28 seminar is the Abuja Copyright Action Plan.
According to the government’s presentation at the meeting, the plan is expected to move Nigeria’s anti-piracy response from broad policy commitments towards specific operational measures.
The proposed framework is expected to identify responsibilities for participating institutions, facilitate intelligence sharing and provide procedures for the removal or blocking of infringing online content.
Fagbemi said the plan should not become another policy document without implementation. Instead, he called for clear actions, responsible institutions and mechanisms for monitoring progress.
That emphasis reflects one of the central difficulties in copyright enforcement: the existence of laws does not automatically translate into effective protection for creators.
Nigeria already has a modern statutory framework in the form of the Copyright Act, 2022, which was signed into law in March 2023. The NCC describes itself as the principal Nigerian authority responsible for copyright administration, regulation and enforcement. Its responsibilities include registration, anti-piracy enforcement and regulation of collective management organisations.
The commission’s own explanation of the law also acknowledges that technology continues to evolve rapidly.
In an earlier NCC discussion of the Copyright Act, an official said the new law largely covers the online environment but noted that technology continually changes in ways that require legal systems to adapt.
The current debate therefore concerns not simply whether Nigeria has copyright legislation, but how effectively the existing framework can be applied to an environment in which infringement can occur through rapidly changing technologies and internationally distributed networks.
NCC Says Current Piracy Figures Need Fresh Measurement
The financial scale of online piracy has frequently been discussed in Nigeria, but officials at the latest seminar urged caution about using old estimates as if they represented the current situation.
NCC Director-General, Dr John O. Asein, said a 2019 estimate had put the value of losses to Nigeria’s creative industry from piracy at approximately $3 billion.
However, Asein said the commission would need a fresh empirical study before presenting a current figure.
He also said enforcement and technological interventions had begun to affect online piracy, adding that the NCC was now at the stage where it needed to measure the current level of infringement and assess the effect of the Copyright Act, 2022.
That distinction is important.
The $3 billion figure has circulated widely in discussions about Nigerian piracy, but the NCC’s latest position is that an updated measurement is necessary before the figure can responsibly be presented as the current size of the problem.
The commission has therefore indicated that the next phase of the anti-piracy effort should include better evidence about the scale, patterns and economic consequences of infringement.
Such research could help policymakers distinguish between different forms of piracy, including unauthorised streaming, illegal downloads, distribution through websites and applications, unauthorised public exhibition, reproduction of physical works and other forms of digital infringement.
It could also help determine where enforcement resources are having the greatest impact.
Film Industry Under Revenue Pressure
The economic consequences of piracy are particularly important for Nollywood.
The Federal Government has cited an estimate that about 70 per cent of revenue that should accrue to the Nigerian film market annually is lost to piracy. The figure was reported in connection with the September 28 seminar and should be understood as a government-attributed estimate rather than an independently verified measurement of current losses.
The figure illustrates the scale of concern surrounding the film sector, although the NCC’s separate call for a fresh empirical study underscores the need for updated evidence.
Nigeria’s film industry involves much more than actors appearing on screen.
A film generates economic activity for producers, directors, screenwriters, cinematographers, editors, costume designers, makeup artists, sound engineers, production assistants, marketers, distributors, cinema operators, streaming services and other workers.
Revenue from a legitimate release may pass through several parts of that chain.
When a film is copied and distributed without authorisation, the loss can therefore extend beyond the person or company that owns the copyright.
A producer may lose part of the expected return on investment. A distributor may lose revenue. A cinema or legitimate streaming platform may face competition from an unauthorised source. Future investment decisions can also be affected if investors believe that creative works cannot be adequately protected.
The same principle applies to music.
A recording represents the work of singers, songwriters, producers, instrumentalists, engineers, labels and other contributors. Digital distribution has opened new international markets for Nigerian music, but it has also created more opportunities for unauthorised redistribution.
Nigeria’s Music Economy and the Digital Shift
The growth of Nigerian music illustrates both the opportunities and risks created by digital distribution.
Streaming services have made it possible for Nigerian artists to reach listeners far beyond the country. A song released in Lagos can be consumed almost immediately in London, New York, Johannesburg, Accra, Toronto or other markets.
That global reach has helped transform Afrobeats into an important part of Nigeria’s international cultural presence.
But the same infrastructure can be exploited by unauthorised distributors.
The Guardian reported that figures cited during the latest government discussions indicated that legitimate income generated by Nigerian music had increased substantially in recent years, while Nigerian artists generated billions of global streams.
These figures demonstrate why copyright enforcement has become an economic issue for the entertainment industry rather than simply a legal dispute between individual creators and infringers.
As legitimate streaming grows, copyright becomes increasingly connected to the commercial value of digital music.
An artist who releases a song expects authorised streams, downloads, licensing agreements, performances and other forms of exploitation to generate income.
The ability to control those uses is part of the commercial value of the work.
WIPO Brings International Tools Into the Discussion
The involvement of WIPO adds an international dimension to Nigeria’s anti-piracy efforts.
Dr Oluwatobiloba Moody, Director of the WIPO Nigeria Office, said Nigeria’s creative and digital economy had become a major national asset, pointing to the global expansion of Nigerian music and Nollywood.
He also warned that digital piracy could create cybersecurity risks for consumers.
Some illicit platforms, he said, may expose users to malicious software, conceal the identities of operators or undermine digital infrastructure.
WIPO’s support includes technical assistance and tools intended to improve the practical enforcement of intellectual property rights.
One of the mechanisms highlighted at the seminar was WIPO ALERT.
WIPO describes the platform as a secure system through which authorised national bodies can provide information about websites or applications determined under national rules to be infringing copyright.
Advertising companies and their service providers can use the information to avoid placing legitimate advertisements on identified infringing websites.
The significance is that it addresses one of the economic mechanisms supporting some pirate operations.
A website may attract users by offering unauthorised films, music or other material and then generate revenue through advertising.
If legitimate advertisers can identify sites that have been determined by authorised national bodies to be infringing, they can avoid directing advertising revenue towards those platforms.
WIPO describes this as part of a broader approach to reducing the financial incentives behind online infringement.
Nigeria is already among the countries whose national lists are searchable through the WIPO ALERT database.
However, WIPO also makes clear that it does not independently determine whether individual websites are infringing. Responsibility for national lists remains with the authorised national authorities that compile them.
That distinction is relevant to any future Nigerian enforcement framework.
Decisions to identify, block or otherwise act against online services must remain grounded in the applicable Nigerian legal framework and due process.
The MovieBox Example
Asein cited the case of MovieBox as an example of the difficulties created by cross-border digital piracy.
According to the NCC, the platform used a Nigerian .ng domain despite being linked by the commission to operators in Asia.
The commission worked with the Nigeria Internet Registration Association to secure suspension of the Nigerian domain in July 2025, according to the NCC’s account presented in reporting on the September 28 seminar.
Asein said the operators subsequently moved infrastructure to the Philippines and used mirror or fallback domains to continue operations.
The case illustrates a fundamental problem facing regulators.
Closing one domain does not necessarily end an online operation if the underlying infrastructure, operators and distribution channels remain available.
An operator can potentially establish another domain, move servers, change applications or redirect users through alternative channels.
This means enforcement has to be capable of following the wider network rather than concentrating only on one web address.
It also explains why the government is asking telecommunications operators, internet service providers, domain registries, digital platforms and financial-service channels to become part of the broader response.
Why Cybersecurity Has Entered the Copyright Debate
The relationship between copyright and cybersecurity is becoming more prominent because digital piracy can involve more than the unauthorised copying of content.
A legitimate streaming platform is generally designed to provide content through controlled commercial and technical systems.
A pirate platform may operate under different conditions.
Consumers may encounter deceptive advertisements, suspicious downloads, malicious software or websites designed to collect information.
WIPO has noted that infringing websites can sometimes contain malware and other unsafe material, which means the problem can affect users who may not even be primarily concerned with copyright.
This does not mean every unauthorised website is automatically a cybersecurity threat, and enforcement agencies must distinguish between copyright infringement and other forms of unlawful activity.
But the overlap is sufficient for the government to argue that online piracy should not be handled by copyright officials working in isolation.
The proposed multi-sector approach therefore brings together institutions with different responsibilities.
Copyright authorities focus on rights.
Telecommunications and digital regulators oversee communications infrastructure and service providers.
Security agencies investigate criminal activity.
Financial institutions and payment platforms can potentially provide information relevant to illicit financial flows where legally authorised.
Advertising companies can help reduce commercial incentives for infringing websites.
Rights holders provide information about their works and alleged infringements.
What the Copyright Act Provides
The Copyright Act, 2022 provides the principal legal framework for copyright protection in Nigeria.
The law covers different categories of creative works and provides mechanisms for rights administration, licensing and enforcement.
It also provides for Collective Management Organisations, commonly referred to as CMOs.
Under the Act, approved CMOs can negotiate and grant licences, collect royalties on behalf of copyright owners and distribute those royalties.
This system is important because individual creators cannot always negotiate every use of their works personally.
A musician, composer, author or other rights holder may have works used by large numbers of businesses or consumers.
Collective management can therefore provide a mechanism for licensing and royalty collection.
The effectiveness of such structures, however, depends on accurate rights information, transparent administration, effective licensing systems and confidence among creators and users.
The NCC has also said that its mandate includes regulating collective management organisations and protecting the rights of authors, artists, musicians and other creators.
Enforcement Is Moving Further Online
The latest national discussion follows a broader shift already underway within the NCC.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria published on September 9, 2026, Asein said the commission had intensified online enforcement operations and was moving significantly from traditional physical enforcement towards digital operations as piracy increasingly occurs online.
The commission has also previously said it was developing modern enforcement mechanisms targeting illegal streaming, cable piracy and unauthorised public exhibitions.
In April, the NCC said technological enforcement would be increasingly important in addressing intellectual-property violations.
The progression reflects the changing nature of the entertainment market.
When physical piracy dominated, enforcement could focus on manufacturing locations, warehouses, shops, street markets and distribution points.
Digital piracy requires additional capabilities.
Authorities must be able to identify infringing websites, preserve evidence, understand digital infrastructure, issue legally valid notices, work with service providers and, where appropriate, pursue criminal investigations across borders.
The transition also requires specialised technical knowledge among investigators and prosecutors.
The Role of Internet Service Providers
Internet service providers and telecommunications companies occupy an important position in the new framework because they form part of the infrastructure through which digital content reaches consumers.
The government has called for stronger cooperation between these companies and copyright authorities.
At the same time, any system involving blocking or removal of online content has to operate according to established legal procedures.
The September 28 discussions specifically referred to the need for lawful and standardised procedures for removal and blocking of infringing content.
That requirement matters because digital enforcement can affect legitimate businesses as well as unlawful operators if decisions are made without adequate verification.
A website may contain both authorised and disputed material. A platform may host user-generated content. A domain may be shared by different services.
The proposed action plan therefore faces the task of balancing effective enforcement with procedural safeguards.
Protecting Creators Without Restricting Legitimate Digital Activity
The challenge for policymakers is not simply to increase enforcement.
They also have to ensure that copyright rules remain predictable for legitimate businesses, consumers, technology companies and creators.
The government has indicated that its proposed approach should operate within the rule of law and protect legitimate digital businesses.
This is particularly important as Nigeria’s entertainment sector increasingly intersects with technology.
Streaming companies, social-media platforms, digital music services, online publishers, video-sharing platforms, advertising networks and other businesses all depend on a functioning intellectual-property environment.
Too little protection can reduce incentives to create and invest.
Overly uncertain enforcement can also create problems for legitimate platforms that need to know precisely what their legal obligations are.
The proposed Abuja Copyright Action Plan therefore has to translate broad objectives into clear operating procedures.
The Consumer Is Part of the Equation
Consumers are also an important part of the anti-piracy debate.
For many users, the attraction of unauthorised platforms has historically been linked to cost and convenience.
A pirate website may provide a film or song without the payment associated with an authorised service.
The NCC has said some consumers have complained after access to previously available unauthorised music and films was disrupted by enforcement measures. Asein’s response was that consumers should use legitimate channels to access the content.
This highlights a broader question for the entertainment industry: legitimate services must remain accessible, convenient and commercially sustainable if authorities expect consumers to move away from unauthorised alternatives.
Copyright enforcement can restrict illegal supply, but the market also depends on legal alternatives.
Streaming subscriptions, cinema releases, licensed downloads, broadcast agreements, music platforms, publishing services and other channels all contribute to the legitimate ecosystem.
The success of anti-piracy efforts will therefore depend partly on whether consumers have practical legal options.
Public Awareness Remains Important
The government and NCC have also emphasised awareness.
The commission has previously argued that many consumers do not fully understand that material available online may still be protected by copyright.
Its September public-awareness activities have urged users to respect intellectual property and report suspected online piracy.
Education can help address situations in which users share or redistribute material without understanding the legal consequences.
For creators, awareness is equally important.
Artists, filmmakers, photographers, writers and other rights holders need to understand what rights they own, how those rights can be registered or administered and what enforcement options are available when infringement occurs.
The NCC operates a copyright registration system and provides information on rights administration and anti-piracy enforcement.
The Wider Economic Stakes
Nigeria’s creative economy extends beyond entertainment in the narrow sense.
Music and film are among its most visible components, but the broader ecosystem includes publishing, photography, visual arts, fashion, broadcasting, software, advertising, design and other creative activities.
The Attorney-General specifically referred to music, film, literature, broadcasting, software, fashion and other creative assets when discussing the sector’s economic importance.
Digital technology has made it easier for creators in these sectors to reach customers.
A fashion designer can promote work internationally through social media. A software developer can distribute an application globally. A photographer can license images to international clients. A Nigerian filmmaker can reach audiences through streaming.
The economic opportunity is therefore much larger than the traditional entertainment market.
But intellectual-property protection is a common requirement across these sectors.
When creative works can be copied without authorisation, the commercial value of the original work can be undermined.
What Happens Next
The immediate issue to watch is the development and implementation of the proposed Abuja Copyright Action Plan.
The government has said the plan should clarify institutional responsibilities and provide mechanisms for intelligence sharing, content removal and website blocking where legally justified.
Its effectiveness will depend on whether participating agencies can turn those objectives into specific procedures.
Another important development will be the NCC’s proposed fresh empirical assessment of piracy.
A new study could provide updated evidence about the size of the problem, the sectors most affected, the forms of infringement currently dominant and whether enforcement measures are producing measurable changes.
The commission has already indicated that it does not want to rely indefinitely on the old $3 billion estimate.
The implementation of the Copyright Act, 2022 will also remain central.
The law provides the statutory foundation, but agencies must continue developing the technical, institutional and enforcement capacity needed to apply it to rapidly evolving digital environments.
WIPO’s technical support could become another component of that process.
Tools such as WIPO ALERT can support cooperation between national copyright authorities and the advertising industry, while WIPO’s wider programmes provide capacity-building and intellectual-property awareness frameworks.
A Changing Entertainment Landscape
The latest anti-piracy initiative comes at a moment when Nigeria’s entertainment industry is increasingly international.
Nigerian music is being consumed around the world. Nollywood productions are distributed through cinemas, television and streaming services. Nigerian creators increasingly operate across multiple digital platforms.
That expansion has created new commercial possibilities.
It has also made intellectual property more valuable.
A song is no longer limited to the physical market where it was released. A film can travel beyond the country within hours. A digital artwork can be viewed and copied anywhere with internet access.
The ability to protect those works therefore becomes part of the infrastructure supporting the creative economy.
For the Federal Government, the NCC and WIPO, the current challenge is to build an enforcement system capable of operating at the same speed as the digital economy.
For creators, the issue is the ability to turn original work into sustainable income.
For legitimate businesses, it is the need for predictable rules and a level commercial environment.
For consumers, it is access to safe and lawful ways of obtaining creative content.
And for technology companies, it is the need to participate in an environment where copyright protection and digital innovation can operate together.
From Policy to Implementation
The September 28 seminar ultimately placed the emphasis on implementation.
Nigeria already has a Copyright Act. It has a dedicated Copyright Commission. It has enforcement mechanisms, digital registration systems and international cooperation through WIPO.
The next question is how effectively those tools can be connected.
Fagbemi’s call for a multi-sector coalition reflects the reality that no single institution controls the entire digital chain through which pirated material can be created, hosted, distributed, monetised and consumed.
A copyright regulator cannot independently control an overseas server.
A telecommunications company cannot independently determine the legal status of every piece of content moving through its infrastructure.
A rights holder may identify an infringement but lack the technical resources to trace the operators.
A security agency may investigate criminal conduct but require specialised copyright evidence.
An advertising company may unknowingly place advertisements on an infringing site unless it receives reliable information from an authorised source.
The proposed coordinated model is intended to connect those responsibilities.
Whether it succeeds will depend on sustained cooperation, reliable evidence, technical capacity, lawful procedures and measurable implementation.
For Nigeria’s entertainment industry, the stakes are substantial.
The country has spent years building global recognition for its music, films and wider creative output. The commercial value of that creativity increasingly depends on digital distribution.
Protecting that value now requires an anti-piracy system capable of operating in the same digital environment.
The Abuja Copyright Action Plan, the NCC’s planned empirical assessment and deeper cooperation with WIPO and technology-sector stakeholders will therefore be important developments to watch in the coming months.
The immediate message from Abuja is clear: Nigeria’s copyright debate is moving beyond the question of physical piracy and towards the more complex challenge of protecting creativity in a borderless digital economy.
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