The Ghanaian government has revealed plans to take tougher measures against television stations accused of airing Nigerian movies without permission from the copyright owners.
Gardiner, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana National Film Authority (NFA), disclosed this during a conversation with Nigerian filmmaker Uchenna Mbunabo.
The discussion centred on the long-standing complaints by Nollywood producers over the unauthorised broadcast of their movies by some Ghanaian television stations.
Mbunabo expressed frustration over the practice, accusing some broadcasters of downloading films from YouTube and airing them on television without obtaining the necessary rights or approvals from the creators.
Reacting to the concerns, Gardiner admitted that the practice is not recognised under Ghanaian law and revealed that authorities are already working on measures to tackle the issue.
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According to him, discussions have been held with the Ministry of Communication, the National Media Commission (NMC) and the National Communications Authority (NCA) to introduce stricter regulations for television operators.
Mbunabo asked: “I noticed that Ghanaian TV stations, the way they are stealing our films and showing them for free with impunity. Is it legalised in your country for TV stations to go on YouTube, download people’s sweat and show it for free?”
Gardiner replied: “It’s not legalised.”
Mbunabo asked: “What is your government doing about it?”
Gardiner replied: “That’s one of the big things that we’re trying to address. We’ve met with the ministry of communication together with NMC and NCA, they govern our TV station in the country. We’re trying to make law to revoke all licenses and all of them will now come to apply afresh.”
However, when asked how long the process would take, Gardiner replied: “By next year (2027), it should be done.”
The issue of alleged copyright infringement by some Ghanaian television stations has been a recurring concern within Nollywood, with filmmakers such as Bimbo Ademoye, Omoni Oboli, Mercy Johnson and Ruth Kadiri previously speaking out against the unauthorised airing of their movies.
