LOCAL award-winning Maskandi musician David ‘Qadisi’ Jenkins, encourages emerging artists to make use of copyright organisations to protect their work.
This comes as the world commemorates World Intellectual Property Day today, April 26. The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) established this day to raise awareness about the importance of intellectual property rights and their contribution to innovation, creativity, and economic development.
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Jenkins believes that the work of various artists in the country have been stolen due to a lack of knowledge about copyright organisations.
“I would like to encourage emerging artists to always ensure that all of their work has been registered with the relevant organisations before releasing it to the public. Whether you are a musician, sculptor, illustrator or graphic designer, you need to protect your intellectual property from thieves. I make use of copyright organisations to protect my work, and other artists need to do the same,” he said.
Jenkins calls on artists to use this day as an opportunity to take cognisance of the importance and the meaning of intellectual property.
“It is an important day as the protection of intellectual property encourages innovation and rewards creativity. The public can learn the importance of recognising the ownership of the creator. As an artist creating content continually, I celebrate the day and what it stands for. I appreciate that a day has been set aside in recognition of this cause,” the musician said.
The theme for World Intellectual Property Day 2023 is ‘Creativity: the next generation’. WIPO’s member states decided in 2000 to designate an annual World Intellectual Property Day. They chose April 26, the date on which the convention establishing WIPO originally entered into force in 1970.
According to South African Government website, copyright is secured automatically when you create an original work that people can see or hear such as a book, painting or music. “You can create your own copyright by putting the words ‘copyright reserved followed by your name and the year. How ever, if you want to have a copyright in a film, DVD or video, you must apply to the registrar of copyright on prescribed forms,” said government.
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