The Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) is 2023’s official and sole body with a collective management license.
This comes after the parliamentary committee on Sports & Culture intervened in a two-year dispute between MCSK and Kenya Copyright Board (KECOBO), awarding the organization an operating Collective Management Organization (CMO) license.
MCSK and KECOBO Row
In January, KECOBO declined to issue the MCSK with a license for operations in 2023 after it accused it of a lack of transparency.
KECOBO asked Kenyan CMOS to submit a list of beneficiaries and amounts paid in royalties for 2022, audited financial statements for a period up to June 2022, and an authenticated members list, but the MCSK failed to comply.
MCSK failed to convince the courts about the illegality of KECOBO’s decision, then took the matter to Parliament where it received a favorable way forward.
MCSK looking to roll out a robust collection and distribution after the collective management License award
Sharing the news to MCSK members, the body’s CEO Ezekiel Mutua said they will roll out a robust collection and distribution framework.
“Following the intervention of the Parliamentary Committee on Sports & Culture, Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) has today been issued with an operating Collective Management Organization (CMO) license, bringing to an end the two-year tussle with the regulator – Kenya Copyright Board.”
Mutua added…
“We have now fully ironed out the outstanding issues with the regulatory agency and are now going to roll out a robust collection and distribution framework that will ensure full compliance with the Copyright Act by all users of copyrighted musical works for the benefit of our members.”
