Kathmandu. The government has formed an inquiry committee to study disputes related to music royalty, copyright and intellectual property, complaints and systemic problems.

The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation has formed a five-member committee under the chairmanship of Laxman Bidari after drawing the attention of the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers.

The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation formed the committee through a ministerial-level decision on Thursday, according to Minister Khadga Raj Poudel’s secretariat.

The members of the committee are Chief of the Department of Information and Broadcasting under the Ministry of Information and Communications, Registrar of the Office of the Registrar of the Copyright of Nepal, Sabita Karki and Chief of the Archaeology and Heritage Section under the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Subhadra Bhattarai. Nirmala Neupane, under-secretary at the Culture Section at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, is the member-secretary of the committee.

The committee has been asked to submit its report along with necessary recommendations within 10 days from the date of its formation. The committee has been given the responsibility to investigate the incidents of intellectual property theft, copyright infringement, unauthorized use and digital and physical violations of creators, creators, artists and other rights holders related to the music industry and recommend necessary actions and recommendations.

The committee will study whether the performance of the music royalty collection and distribution system, collective management organizations and other related organizations is lawful, transparent, effective and just. Likewise, the committee will also investigate whether the processes of determination, collection, documentation, management and distribution of the collected royalty amount are transparent, evidence-based and just.

The committee will also recommend measures for policy, legal and institutional reform for the overall development of the music industry, expansion of the market, safe and transparent use of digital technology, increasing the access of Nepali music at the national and international level and protecting the interests of all stakeholders including creators, artists, producers, distributors, entrepreneurs and consumers.

The committee will study the existing system of collecting royalty from government bodies, public corporations, broadcasting institutions, digital media, hotels, restaurants, transport, event organizers and the private sector and recommend measures to make it effective, integrated and systematic.

Likewise, the committee will study the financial and moral rights, ownership, use and royalty of the music produced or broadcast by the government or public bodies including Radio Nepal, Nepal Television, Ratna Recording Institution and other government and public bodies.

The committee will study the provisions related to registration, operation, regulation, monitoring and accountability of collective management organizations and will also recommend for the establishment of an effective regulatory structure as well as on institutional capacity building of the Office of the Registrar of Copyrights, archiving, digital monitoring, technology-friendly services and enhancing regulatory effectiveness.

The role of the Committee is to develop a central digital system, software-based monitoring system and digital archiving system to make the royalty collection and distribution process transparent, credible and technology-friendly.

It will study the existing bilateral or multilateral disputes and complaints among the creators, producers, distributors, broadcasting organizations, digital media and other stakeholders related to the music sector and recommend measures for resolution.

The committee will study the issues to be amended, amended and improved in the Copyright Act, 2059, Copyright Rules, 2061 and related laws as per the time and give suggestions to them.