The federal government has called for a unified coalition among copyright regulators to combat the growing threat of online piracy and safeguard the nation’s creative and digital economy.
The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, said security agencies, telecommunications operators, digital platforms, and private stakeholders must come together.
The Minister made the call in Abuja on Monday, 28 September 2026, during the National Seminar on Copyright, Cybersecurity, and Nigeria’s Creative and Digital Economy. The event, organised by the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), had the theme ‘Protecting Nigeria’s Creative Economy and Digital Infrastructure Against Online Piracy.’
Fagbemi stressed that the current scale and technical sophistication of digital piracy have made it impossible for enforcement agencies to tackle the issue in isolation.
He explained that piracy has evolved from traditional physical reproduction into borderless, cross-jurisdictional operations.
The Minister noted that illicit entities utilise streaming platforms and domain networks to distribute copyrighted works globally within seconds, often concealing their identities and financial proceeds.
He said: ‘Nigeria’s creative industry has grown exponentially in recent years. Our music, films, literature, broadcasting, software, fashion, and other creative assets continue to gain global acclaim. Digital technology has accelerated this expansion, creating unprecedented opportunities for content creation, multi-platform distribution, and commercial exploitation.
‘While this growth offers crucial pathways for job creation, foreign direct investment, and economic diversification, it simultaneously exposes our creative sector to complex, evolving threats-most notably the proliferation of digital piracy. Today, infringing content is reproduced, modified, and globally distributed in seconds through illegal streaming platforms, pirate websites, and rogue digital services, operating across borderless networks where perpetrators, technical infrastructure, and illicit profits are frequently hidden across multiple foreign jurisdictions.
‘It is, therefore, beyond doubt that online piracy cannot be tackled effectively by copyright enforcement authorities operating in isolation. Eliminating digital piracy demands a deliberate, multi-sectoral coalition spanning security and law enforcement agencies, telecommunications operators, internet service providers, digital platforms, broadcasters, payment gateways, domain registries, and rights holders across the creative ecosystem.’
Calling for urgent collaboration, the Minister said, ‘Copyright infringement in the digital domain no longer exists in a vacuum; it increasingly intersects with organised cybercrime, e-commerce vulnerabilities, and threats to the overall integrity of our critical national digital infrastructure. There is, consequently, an imperative need for a synchronised national strategy grounded in cross-institutional synergy, shared accountability, and actionable consensus.’
‘Simply put, we must transition decisively from policy discussion to practical execution,’ Fagbemi added.
Although the Copyright Act, 2022 provides a modern statutory foundation, Fagbemi stressed that its success depends on structured multi-agency implementation. A key expected outcome of the seminar is the Abuja Copyright Action Plan, an operational framework designed to assign clear institutional duties, establish real-time intelligence sharing, and set standardised procedures for the prompt removal and domain-blocking of infringing content.
The initiative aims to build ‘safe corridors’ that protect creators, improve investor confidence, and support national economic diversification.
Speaking on the sidelines of the seminar, the Director-General of the NCC, Dr. John O. Asein, disclosed that enforcement measures and technological interventions are actively disrupting illegal distribution channels.
Asein also cautioned against relying on an unverified 2019 figure estimating industry losses at $3 billion, saying the Commission is preparing a new empirical study to measure current piracy levels under the 2022 legal framework.
He also stressed that unmitigated piracy deprives creators of fair compensation, deters foreign investment, and risks positioning Nigeria as a destination for illicit digital operators.
Highlighting a recent enforcement success, Asein referenced MovieBox, an illicit platform linked to Asian operators that had adopted a .ng domain name to appear local. The NCC’s intervention shut down the Nigerian domain, forcing the operators to relocate their infrastructure to the Philippines.
In a goodwill message, the Director, World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Nigeria, Dr Oluwatobiloba Moody, highlighted the global influence of Nigerian music and Nollywood.
Moody, however, pointed out that pirate platforms frequently expose consumers to broader cybersecurity threats and malware.
He also reaffirmed WIPO’s support for Nigeria’s enforcement strategy through capacity building and technical frameworks, notably WIPO ALERT. The secure platform enables participating nations to share data on infringing domains, allowing the advertising sector to block ad placements on pirate sites and starve them of revenue.