JOIN DRIVERN TAXI AS PARTNER DRIVER TODAY!
Government says the levels of piracy in the country is worrying and has for this reason called for concerted efforts to effectively fight the vice.
Commerce, Trade and Industry minister says it was for this reason that his ministry is currently working on a bill that will protect the creative works such as tradition dances and ceremonies in the country.
Mr. Sichinga said Zambia has rich culture and tradition that needs to be protected so as to maximize the benefits because the value in the creation and use of intellectual property for economic development has not only been recognized in Zambia but globally.
“Today, universal acceptance and strategic use of intellectual property offer an opportunity for individuals, businesses and countries to convert their creative resources into economic assets capable of generating wealth and contributing to a more secure future, “he said.
The minister said this during the commemoration of World Intellectual Property day at the Freedom statue under the theme: “MOVIES A GLOBAL PASSION”
And some unscrupulous business people are reportedly putting counterfeit hologram stickers on some audio-visual products which they are selling to unsuspecting consumers despite the October 31, 2013 deadline.
Cycorps Managing Director Kingsley Nkonde says some unscrupulous people in the music and film industry have already started producing counterfeit hologram stickers which they are putting on audio and visual products which are being sold to unsuspecting consumers.
Mr. Nkonde said following a successful sensitization campaign on the introduced hologram in the country spear headed by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services (MIBS) in all the ten provinces, consumers have been looking for audio visual products with a hologram.
He added that this has now forced pirates to start producing counterfeit holograms.
Mr. Nkonde then presented a musical DVD for Malawian Skeffa Chimoto which has a combination of a Zambian and the Malawian hologram to the minister.
He said this was being done because consumers are now demanding to see holograms before they buy any audio-visual product being sold on the street or in the shops.
And Patents and Companies Registration Agency (PACRA) acting assistant registrar Sunduzwayo Zimba says intellectual property is a very important tool for economic growth of any nation.
Mr. Zimba said at the same function that intellectual property rights shape each stage of the film-makers journey from the script to the screen.
He said this year’s theme cannot over emphasised because it has come at a better time when most of the film producers and script writers alike have not fully benefited from their works.
Meanwhile, the intercepted counterfeit Samsung phones valued at K867, 000 have been destroyed.
The counterfeit products were destroyed at the Central Recycling Company yesterday in the presence of the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA), Samsung representatives in Zambia and Cycorps Zambia Limited officials.
And Cycorps Managing Director Nkonde reaffirmed his organization ’s commitment to rid the country of counterfeit products.
Mr. Nkonde said the Government has lost millions of kwacha through counterfeit Samsung phones that come into the country without paying tax at the point of entry into the country.
“These counterfeit products are just smuggled into the country and government has continued lose millions of kwacha through such illegal activities, ” Said Mr. Nkonde.
