By Joe Kiarie
It has always been branded a toothless bulldog but the Music Copyright Society of Kenya is now asserting its authority.
The Public Service Vehicle (PSV) crew, who have in the past established a reputation for playing unlimited music in their vehicles without paying royalties, are already feeling the pinch due to a tax imposed by MCSK.
Radio broadcasters, concert promoters, bars and restaurants, hotels, cyber cafes, banks, salons and exhibitions have also not been spared the tax that earned the organisation Sh70 million last year.
But it is the hide and seek game between MCSK inspectors and matatu operators that has caught many people’s eyes. Under the Copyright Act, a PSV can only be charged the fee if it has a music system fixed in it.
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Evade inspectors
Some matatu crew have devised ways of playing music without paying the tax. They place loose music systems in the cabin but hide them when approached by MCSK inspectors.
But MCSK’s Licensing and Marketing Officer Peter Enyenze says the organisation has upped its game to outsmart the crafty crew.
"Our inspectors operate from the roads and are hard to beat. It is hard to remove the radio and speakers from a vehicle and if we spot the speaker, you must show where the music system is. If not, we use the speakers in court as evidence of infringement," the officer reveals.
The inspectors are usually accompanied by armed police officers, who enforce the Copyright Act. They arrest arraign offenders in court.
MCSK has also established a mobile inspection unit, which consists of plain clothed officials who move in unmarked cars.
They track matatus that play music with no valid MCSK sticker. The strict vigilance is now giving drivers sleepless nights.
"If one has not paid, he is taken to court and charged with infringement under section 38 (2) of the Copyright Act. The fine is at the discretion of the judge and can be as high as Sh400,000," he notes.
He says the fine has instilled fear in most matatu operators and prompted them to comply with the law, which came into effect in April, last year.
Enyenze notes there has been a misconception that the law only applies to local music. "It applies to any kind of music from across the globe," he says.
MCSK usually targets anyone playing music in public but has formulated various tariff structures based on usage of music.
"A radio station will not be complete without playing music, and so would a disco. This is why we make them pay more money than a music shop or a matatu, which can survive without playing music," he notes.
For matatus, he says the tariff is dependent on the sitting capacity, with 14-seater matatus currently being charged Sh255 per seat per year. The minimum fee expected from such vehicles is Sh3,000 annually.
But matatu crew are now questioning the criteria used to collect the fee, expressing fear fraudsters could have infiltrated the business. They claim some royalty collectors regularly collect money from them without issuing receipts.
"In just one month, I have been approached by five different groups all claiming to be from MCSK. I gave out Sh3,000 in the first case but I have refused to pay any more money," says Martin Kinje, a driver plying Nairobi’s route number 44.
Kinje says the purported tax collectors, who are neither in uniform nor accompanied by police officers, waylay matatus and demand money on the spot.
Some have even been demanding royalties from private cars, which are not subject to such fees.
Invasion by fraudsters
Enyenze refuses to rule out the invasion of the business by fraudsters but insists MCSK inspectors always have uniforms and badges.
Mr Salim Ali, a driver on Nairobi’s Huruma route, wonders why some matatus have to pay the tax when they only play car radios.
"The broadcasters are the ones who should pay royalties for music on radio, not the one listening to it," he says.
But Enyenze says anyone playing broadcast music in public must pay since it adds value to business.
MCSK’s member base has grown from 400 in 2007 to 3,593 . They consist of music authors, composers and publishers.
