By Tofarati Ige & Juliet Ebirim

Lack of structure, menace of piracy and inordinate distribution channel have been identified as part of the major problems undermining the growth of the country’s entertainment industry. Speakers at this year’s edition of the Nigerian Entertainment Conference which held on Wednesday, April 22, at Oceanview, Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos, pointed out that if urgent steps are not taken to address the problems, the entertainment industry in Nigeria will go into oblivion.

Speaking at the event which attracted a cream of stakeholders in the industry, Eldee said, lack of adequate data remains one of the biggest problems facing the entertainment industry. According to him, many artistes today are unaware of how much airplay their music are getting as well as the royalty, if any, that are accruing to them.

Stating that he has been forced to combine being a record label owner with being a solution provider in terms of making data available to the people that need it in the industry, Eldee said, “There is no data collection in the industry as regards what is due to artistes for their music. And when you do get the information, you have to pay an arm and a leg for it.

Meanwhile, this information can make things a lot easier. The vision I have solves that problem forever…this is going to cut across Nigeria, Africa, and the rest of the world. As a Nigerian artiste, you need to know how much airplay you’re getting even in the remotest parts of the world.”

On his own, Chief Tony Okoroji, Chairman of the Copyright Society of Nigeria, COSON,urged industry operators to embrace the digital space as it represents the future of the industry. According to him, “Alaba is our past. The digital space is the future. We must be ahead in the digital age because our intellectual properties such as music, movies and literature are the power-house of the future of Nigeria.”

Nollywood actress Joke Silva called on the government and stakeholders to tackle piracy. Her words: “If piracy is not dealt with the way we dealt with fake drugs, an industry will be killed and by so doing, we would have murderers and criminals due to lack of jobs. There must be sanctions to checkmate this.”

On his part, filmmaker and Editorial Board Chairman of NET, Chris Ihidero, said there is an increase in the establishment of training centres and called on actors to be careful where they acquire skills. “Training has become the cheapest cabal in Nollywood. Those who need training are training people. You have to be careful who you train with.”

The conference, with the theme, ‘Buying and Selling Nigerian Entertainment…and everything in between,’ also afforded participants including upcoming artistes, producers, and content providers to interact and network with their colleagues.

Other speakers and panelists were Davido, MI Abaga, George Thorpe, Shizzi, Kemi Lala Akindoju, Fumilola Aofiyebi, Chioma Ude, Demola Ogundele, Deji Awokoya, Wunmi Obe amongst others.