The Bahamas continues to face pressure from U.S. authorities who have placed the country on a watch list for copyright violations, but the so-called violators are shunning allegations that they are breaking American laws that protect intellectual property rights.
“I don’t think we are threatened in any way whatsoever,” Brendan Paddick, CEO of Cable Bahamas said last night.
The Bahamas was among 50 countries listed, a move that the government has said it is disappointed by.
United States officials have been keeping their eyes on Cable Bahamas for alleged copyright violations regarding reproduced American made material on cable channels here.
Mr. Paddick dismissed such concerns, saying that the company is operating fairly and legally as it has paid out millions of dollars over the years into a local fund that copyright holders could access if they feel they have claims against the company.
He said Cable Bahamas has been unable to secure copyright agreements with channels like HBO, A&E and ESPN. It is a problem faced by other cable operators in the region, Mr. Paddick pointed out.
“Essentially, most of the countries in the Caribbean have a lot of problems entering into agreements with many of the networks,” he said. “Despite our efforts to enter into agreements and to pay them on a basis similar to what cable companies in the U.S. pay them, these companies essentially refuse to enter into licensing agreements with Cable Bahamas, mainly because they claim they don’t have the rights from the copyright holders…and it would be too expensive for them to secure rights for many of the Caribbean nations…to pay for their programmes.”
In a recent communication with U.S. authorities, the government vowed to enact legislation within this session of parliament that would correct deficiencies in copyright laws.
After it was announced last week that The Bahamas was on the list, Minister of Financial Services and Investments Allyson Maynard-Gibson said in a release that, “The government is deeply disappointed that this measure has been taken, despite good faith efforts on the part of successive governments including this administration to address the copyright concerns of the United States Trade Representative and the producers of programmes in the United States.”
But U.S. authorities have urged quick action on the issue as protection of intellectual property is an increasingly important component of U.S. trade policy.
Robert Zoellick of the Office of U.S. Trade said, “Open markets and rules that guarantee the protection of intellectual property are critical to the continued health of the creative sectors of our economy.”
Mr. Zoellick said earlier in the year that a key concern was the existence of a provision in Bahamian law allowing for compulsory licensing to cable operators of retransmission of premium cable television programming, urging the government to swiftly enact the necessary amendments to its copyright laws.
U.S. officials are concerned that the compulsory license provision in local law is too broad and allows cable companies to have too much latitude in the distribution of their channels.
They have also expressed concerns that the Government of The Bahamas has failed to consult with affected U.S. copyright holders regarding the issue of equitable remuneration for the compulsory licensing for free over-the-air broadcasts.
But Mr. Paddick said compulsory licensing is a provision of copyright law that is accepted internationally.
“By virtue of the compulsory license of the country in particular, cable companies are permitted to carry the programming, to distribute it over their cable networks and they do in fact pay a fee into a copyright collective and The Bahamas government has actually formed a copyright tribunal which collects fees from Cable Bahamas on a quarterly basis,” he pointed out.
Mr. Paddick added, “That fund continues to grow every month as we continue to pay into it and for those reasons, we feel quite comfortable with this issue. It’s not a concern for us. In fact, it’s a very well-established international law of compulsory licensing that many, many countries around the world have adopted.”
He said he was not surprised to hear that the U.S. was having such concerns.
Mr. Paddick insisted that the fight was between powerful and influential groups like the Motion Pictures Association of America and cable channels.
Mr. Zoellick, meanwhile, has encouraged U.S. copyright owners and operators of premium cable services to enter into good faith negotiations with licensed cable operators in The Bahamas.
The Intellectual Property Alliance in the United States estimates that global piracy costs that country more than $22 billion annual.
The 50 countries listed on the U.S. Trade Representative Report reportedly accounted for $9.8 billion of those annual losses.
By Candia Dames, The Bahama Journal
