The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) says it has shut down over 20 websites showing pirated movies.
Charles Amudipe, deputy director of operations of the NCC, said the agency has continued to clamp down on illegal movie websites.
Amudipe said digital piracy is the latest challenge that creatives face in the present age.
He also revealed that the agency has been given more constitutional powers to apprehend perpetrators of film piracy.
“If you observe critically, the use of piracy has moved from the physical space, especially in the music and film industry, to the internet,” he said.
“And so also, the NCC is moving to those spaces to shut them down. You observe that recently, we have had a new act, that is the Copyright Act 2022.
“That law has broadened the horizon to give the commission more powers to deal with such situations.
“I can tell you, in the last two months, the NCC has shut down over 20 sites that are broadcasting and offering for sale movies created by Nigerians and those other people from the diaspora.”
The NCC deputy director urged stakeholders and the public to raise awareness against sites that broadcast movies without a licence from the producers.
Recently, the Lagos police arrested a criminal syndicate engaged in large-scale movie piracy, copyright infringement, and other cybercrimes.
The police acted based on the petition by FilmOne Entertainment Ltd.
The police revealed that the prime suspect behind the upload charged viewers N1,000 for access to a pirated full copy of the movie.
On Thursday, actors, film producers, regulators, celebrities, and other stakeholders in Lagos also launched a campaign against piracy
The exercise was held to decry the harmful effects of piracy on the creative industry.
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