Hooijer visits AVRS as body set to picket unlicensed audio-visual works users

For three days last week, the leadership of the Audio-Visual Rights Society of Nigeria (AVRS) played host to Mr. Rob Hooijer, a consultant in copyrights administration and collections management.

Hoojier, with 45 years experience working with the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and other top right management organisations such as, SAMRO, CISAC, and IFPI visited AVRS on behalf of AISGE to access its progress and facilitate co-operation.

The three-day visit was also to assess the current status of AVRS taking into account its licensing activities, opportunities, staffing, office accommodation, IT infrastructure, lobbying activities, transparency, accountability to its members (particularly performer members) and governance.

Hooijer visit to the new corporate office of the AVRS was also to identify training opportunities and subjects, which would benefit AVRS and which AISGE may be able to assist with when holding its seminar in Madrid during summer this year.

Hooijer, who met with the AVRS Chairman, Mr. Mahmood Ali-Balogun, the acting GM, Mrs. Bukola Adeyemi and some directors of AVRS, said he was impressed with what he met on ground and was optimistic that with the right support the AVRS would in no time be the collective management organisation of choice in the continent.

“So much work has been done to get AVRS started and i am impressed with the zeal and commitment exhibited by the present leadership of the AVRS to get the CMO to actually begin operations,” Hooijer said, even as he hinted that he was able to meet with the DG NCC, Mr. John Asein in Abuja to ascertain the current position of the Nigerian Copyright Act and the government’s intention to provide legislation in line with its ratification of the Beijing Treaty.

Ali-Balogun said the visit by Hooijer afforded the AVRS opportunity to be acquainted with current trends and workable strategies in the area of collective management administration and governance.

The filmmaker and culture advocate described the visit simply as “rewarding, enlightening and mutually beneficial”.

He stated that the AVRS would, beginning next week, embark on massive picketing of organisations that have refused to be licensed as users of audio-visual works. “We have put all the machinery in motion to ensure total success. Those who use audio-visual content must be ready to be licensed or we disrupt their business,” he said.