The Kenya Copyright Board (KECOBO) has announced a significant increase in royalty collection for Kenyan musicians, sparking debate within the industry.
According to KECOBO, daily collections have skyrocketed from a previous average of Ksh.600,000 to an impressive Ksh.2.2 million.
According to Citizen, a comprehensive statement by KECOBO released on Thursday, June 20, 2024, provided detailed figures on the recent royalty collections.
“The Board notes that following the issuance of a Collective Management Organization license to Performing and Audio-Visual Rights Society of Kenya (PAVRISK), collection of royalties from music users has increased from a daily collection of Ksh.600,000 to Ksh.2.2 million daily.”
Restructuring of the Royalty Collection System
This increase in collections comes in the wake of a significant restructuring of the royalty collection system in Kenya. On June 8, 2024, KECOBO issued a sole licence to collect royalties to the Performing and Audio-Visual Rights Society of Kenya (PAVRISK).
This move effectively stripped the other two previously existing Collective Management Organizations (CMOs) – the Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) and the Kenya Association of Music Producers (KAMP) – of their collection mandate.
KECOBO, led by chairperson Joshua Kutuny, elaborated on the success of this new arrangement:
Looking ahead, KECOBO expressed optimism for even greater growth in royalty collections.
The board projected that:
“The daily collection is expected to rise to Ksh.3million daily with introduction of an enhanced system and support from music users.”
To support this growth and improve transparency, KECOBO added, “The Board encourages transparency in the collection and distribution of royalties by the CMO to help cut on costs and increase royalty distribution to artists to at least 70 percent of the collection.”
In addition to the improved collection system, KECOBO outlined several initiatives aimed at supporting Kenyan artists.
These include plans to establish recording studios in all 47 counties, democratizing access to professional recording facilities across the nation. The board also revealed ongoing discussions with relevant government ministries to create financial support programs for artists.
“The Board is in the process of engaging the Ministry of Cooperatives and Micro/ Small and Medium Enterprises Development to establish artists and creatives’ savings cooperative society (SACCO) that will give artists an opportunity to borrow at a lower rate,” KECOBO stated, highlighting efforts to improve artists’ financial stability.
MCSK’s Ezekiel Mutua Refutes the Claims
However, these claims of success have not gone unchallenged. Ezekiel Mutua, the CEO of MCSK, has vehemently contested KECOBO’s reported figures. In a scathing response, Mutua accused KECOBO of both misrepresenting the facts and disregarding legal procedures.
Mutua wrote, “When the country is burning because of the arrogance and incompetence of public officials, you are here disobeying court orders and lying to the public to please your corrupt paymasters. Shame on you.”
He went on to dispute the collection figures directly, stating, “PAVRISK has collected less than 5k in three weeks. You claiming it’s over 20M. What does it take for your useless state corporations to know that it’s not business as usual in Kenya?”
Mutua’s statement alludes to an ongoing legal battle, suggesting that MCSK had filed a case contesting the issuance of the sole collection licence to PAVRISK.
The exact details and current status of this legal challenge remain unclear, but Mutua’s comments imply that there may be unresolved court orders related to the matter.
