The challenges of ICT development with regards to copyright protection in Tanzania

Abstract

This paper seeks to discuss the challenges brought by ICT development on copyright protection in Tanzania in legal perspectives. In this paper, laws relating to copyright protection in Tanzania are discussed in order to identify the gaps in the law which ultimately contributes to the challenges in protection of copyright in online environment. The laws which are discussed include the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Act1 (hereinafter referred to as the CNRA) and the regulations made thereunder including the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights (Production and Distribution of Sound and Audio-visual Recordings) Regulations2 and the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights (Registration of Members and their Works) Regulations.3 Some basic issues which are discussed in this paper include copyright protection in Tanzania, copyright infringement in the conventional world, copyright protection in the cyberspace and the challenges arising from ICT development to copyright laws in Tanzania.