Executive Director for the Media Foundation For West Africa, Sulemana Braimah
Executive Director for the Media Foundation For West Africa has condemned Accra FM for stealing rights to broadcast AFCON 2021 when they refused to be part of the consortium that bought rights for the broadcast.
Media reports indicated that Police stormed the studios of Accra-based Accra FM to arrest some presenters of the Radio station for broadcasting the tournament when they had no rights to do so.
The arrest was resisted as workers of the organisation fought back to prevent any of their colleagues from getting arrested.
But reacting to this, Sulemana Braimah condemned the raid by the Police at the studios of Acca FM.
However, he condemned the media house for stealing the rights when they refused to join a consortium formed to purchase the rights.
“If you are a media house and refused to be part of the consortium to cover the cost of the broadcast rights, why would you want to profit unduly. Who should pay for you to have it for for free? Piracy is unacceptable. In fact, it’s thievery and must stop or else be stopped,” he said.
Read His Full Post Below
AFCON COVERAGE, MEDIA PIRACY & POLICE RAIDS
I have been reading about police raids on some media houses over coverage of the ongoing African Cap of Nations (AFCON2021). Of course, any form of raid on media houses by police raises alarm. So I have tried to make inquiries and my information points to acts of piracy by the affected media houses. Media rights to broadcast certain programmes or events can be expensive.
My information is that for the ongoing AFCON2021, CAF charged 2million Euros (over GHC14million) for the rights to broadcast the games in Ghana. A media house or media houses will have to pay for the rights in order to broadcast the tournament. Those who pay have exclusive rights.
They then can promote the broadcast to generate commercial revenue to cover the costs of the rights and to hopefully make profits. You cannot broadcast without rights. As far as the ongoing AFCON is concerned, I am informed that GBC reached out to private media houses to join GBC to cover the cost of the rights for the broadcast. Some media houses agreed to join GBC. Others refused or declined to join GBC to make a contribution towards the cost of the rights.
So if you are a media house and knows that sports gives you audience and AFCON will even give you more audience and yet you refused to be part of the consortium to cover the cost of the broadcast rights, what rights to you have to broadcast the AFCON?
Which media houses should pay for you to get the content for free? Certainly, there cannot be free lunch. If you are a media house and refused to be part of the consortium to cover the cost of the broadcast rights, why would you want to profit unduly. Who should pay for you to have it for free? Piracy is unacceptable. In fact, it’s thievery and must stop or else be stopped.