Sebaggala floored in MTN Uganda caller ring back tone case
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KAMPALA.
The High Court on friday ordered former Kampala Mayor Nasser Sebaggala to pay MTN Uganda and SMS media Uganda after losing the case in which he had sued the both entities for using his voice as a ringtone on the mobile telephone network.
Justice Christopher Madrama of the Commercial court while delivering the judgment noted that some basic facts in the case where not in dispute because the voice was recorded and Caller tunes were made.]
"An interview with the media is not a private conversation; you cannot control how the recording was going to be used. Copyright in voice recording serves producers and Sebaggala did not give instructions on how his speech would to be used. He freely gave his answers for the consumption of the public and his words were not twisted. The author of the works has moral rights and the owner of the works has economic rights and the two can be merged,” Justice Madrama ruled adding on that “Sebaggala cannot be the author to work he did not consent to and cannot prove the use of his voice was injurious to his character.”
The judge also noted that Sebaggala is not the author of the work and therefore does not enjoy protection under copyright law and that he did not agree to performance rights and so cannot be classified as a Performer .Otherwise courts would be filled with cases of celebrities for every utterance they make.
Justice Madrama basing on the definition of an author stated that "The third party is the creator of works. I have listened to the video recording they are the same words of the plaintiff, some questions edited out the Plaintiff testified that he knew he would be recorded and that he was responding to questions. He was recorded not by his own arrangement, but by the third party's agents and he did not deliver a speech but was responding to various questions.”
Mr Sebaggala wanted MTN Uganda and SMS Media to pay him Shs8 billion from the proceeds of using his ringtone for which he claimed copyright.
