The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), has made seizure of more than 469,235 units of pirated materials with an estimated ‘street market’ value of N750 million.
Dr John Asein, NCC Director-General, who disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja, said that the material included suspected pirated books and contrivance.
He said the commission also arrested 57 copyright violators.
The location of the pirated contrivance included Abuja, Lagos, Ibadan, Port Harcourt, Makurdi among others.
According to him, the year 2025 represented a critical consolidation phase for the commission.
“Within the year, the commission recorded measurable achievements in institutional strengthening, enforcement, prosecution, public education and regulatory oversight.
“At the same time, it confronted enduring structural, legal and technological challenges that underscored the complexity of copyright administration in the nation’s digital and informal economy,” he said.
Speaking on the institutional capacity and organisational strength in 2025, Asein said NCC prioritised human capital development as a cornerstone for effective copyright administration.
He further said that the commission has conducted in-house trainings and professional workshops to enhance staff competence in copyright administration, enforcement procedures, communication, and emerging intellectual property issues.
“NCC facilitated engagements on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and copyright, focusing on policy implications, rights ownership and enforcement challenges associated with AI-generated content”.
Asein said that the commission also collaborated with universities, research institutions, and government agencies to expand knowledge on intellectual property, innovation and the creative economy.
“These efforts strengthened institutional readiness and positioned the Commission to respond more effectively to evolving copyright challenges.
“NCC sustained its role as a key policy actor in Nigeria’s copyright ecosystem throughout 2025 in policy and legal framework development,” he noted.
NCC boss further explained that commission implemented nationwide copyright awareness campaigns through public events, traditional media engagements and digital platforms.
He noted that the commission also produced educational contents and programmes such as the “Copyright Connect” series, “Creative Icon,” designed to recognise and celebrate creatives on the various social media platforms.
” Commission participated in cybercrime awareness campaigns and national consultations, reinforcing collaborative responses to digital copyright infringement”.
Asein emphasised that the commission faced several persistent challenges in the area of piracy and Infringement.
According to him, the continued sale and distribution of pirated books and creative works, both offline and online necessitated repeated enforcement interventions.
“Difficulty in tracing legitimate sources and limited cooperation from some traders and printers hindered regulation.
“The growing sophistication of online piracy platforms and the rapid emergence of AI, generated content introduced new regulatory and enforcement complexities,” he said.
Asein further said that under the year reviewed, NCC strategically focused on advancing copyright protection within an increasingly complex creative and digital environment.
“Through strengthened capacity, expanded enforcement, sustained public education and robust partnerships, the Commission reinforced its mandate to protect creators’ rights and promote a lawful creative economy.
“At the same time, the challenges encountered during the year, highlights the need for continued investment in technology, legal reform, stakeholder engagement and inter-agency collaboration, as Nigeria’s creative industries continue to grow and digitise,” Asein said.
He expressed the Commission’s commitment to continue to operationalise the provisions of the Copyright Act, 2022, while responding to rapid technological changes, persistent piracy and growing stakeholder expectations within Nigeria’s creative economy.
Dr Usman-Oladipo Akanbi, President, Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), said NCC has maintained an efficacious collaboration and discharged its duties commendably.
Akandi said that representatives of NCC always attend their annual convention to appraise authors.
He noted that the knowledge imparted by the commission has been salutary.
“Notwithstanding, the most insidious threat to intellectual property rights is posed by the social media and digital real.
“There exists an imperative to devise a mechanism whereby creators can derive revenue from online readership, particularly in instances where their work has been pirated or copyright infringements have occurred.
” This is an area where I humbly suggest the Copyright Commission can focus its efforts on,” he said.
Mr Sulaiman Mohammed, President of Society of Nigerian Artists (SNA), said fight against piracy just turned out as a game-changer for artists in Nigeria.
According to him, it is about artists getting paid for their work, so they can keep creating for a fair compensation.
” It encourages creativity by knowing that artistes works are protected and help them to produce quality content.
“This is the rebounding effect of earning from royalties licensing and sales with the recent push from NCC and the collaboration it signed on piracy law with the National Gallery of Art that the SNA witnessed,” he said.
Similarly, Mr Adesola Akinsanya, President of Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA) commended NCC’s consistent leadership and commitment to online copyright enforcement and acknowledged the D-G’s proactive initiatives.
Akinsanya expressed optimism that the Digital Trust Anti-Piracy Champion award received by the commission would spur it to sustain and expand its efforts.
He also lauded the NCC’s interventions and promotion of a safer digital space.
He said that NIRA’s recent suspension of several illegal domains hosting unauthorised copyright content was enabled by data provided by the NCC.
