ALMOST EVERY SATURDAY scores of vendors gather at the Cheapside Public Market to sell their produce. Every shopper understands that the various goods on offer are for sale and that those goods are being made available legally – that is, they are not stolen.
Yet at the entrance to the market and in nearby areas, illegally downloaded music and movies are openly offered for sale. Everyone seems to turn a blind eye to these brazen acts of theft.
We are at the start of this year’s Crop Over season and this is perhaps a good time for us to recommit to not stealing the music of our entertainers, who often record at a financial loss while making a positive contribution to the festival.
Their creative energies must not be disrespected by people who see music as having no value. In much the same way that the theft of a pair of shoes, a mobile phone, or a bicycle is treated as socially unacceptable, the theft of creations of the mind, whether they are the work of our animators, software developers, architects, movie producers or musicians, must be discouraged. These creative efforts must be protected with the same vigour that is applied in other areas of business.
This theft of intellectual property is an international problem, and the Internet has made a bad situation worse, as the illegal downloading of material costs creators billions of dollars in lost earnings annually. The situation is compounded by the trade in counterfeit goods, which hits the entertainment and sports industries particularly hard.
Many Barbadians believe they should be able to pirate the latest movies, entertainment and sports events free of cost. But an appreciation of the damage it causes is becoming better understood so that even China, which is well known for piracy and counterfeit goods, is taking a tougher stance, especially as more Chinese companies seek to be globally competitive.
Clearly, the United States government, too, is not turning a blind eye to the continued theft of the intellectual property of its creative sector. The crackdown on some cable television companies in the Caribbean shows the intent of the United States’ Trade Representative Office in not just placing the region on its IP Watch List but taking action – specifically in the case of regional cable providers, who had to remove channels they did not have authorisation to distribute.
What is ridiculous is that subscribers were being charged for the provision of these channels.
The worrisome thing in Barbados has been the virtual deafening silence on the entire matter, unlike in Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, where regulators have been actively following up to ensure the situation is resolved.
Having pirates operating in the local market is bad enough, but having large, established businesses employing a similar “business model” makes the concept of legality appear to be completely farcical.
The Crop Over season provides a good opportunity for the authorities to arise from their slumber and address these important concerns.
