At last, the artists in Eswatini are protected from piracy. This is after the minister of commmerce Mancoba Khumalo launched a copyright society and its board. The Minister said the Board which would be chaired by Creative Director Samkeliso Nxumalo would determine payable copyright rates and tariffs and ensure that royalties were paid to artists.
However, it is key to know that this new turn in the entertainment industry brings both positivities and negativities. Yes this turn means a guaranteed source of income for the artists but artists need to be well informed and educated about the entertainment industry as they are now more prone to 'vultures' who will seek to exploit their talent for economic gain. The new change also means that artists will have to spend more in order to gain more. The copyrights act require the artist to subscribe and pay a certain monthly fee to the board in order to accumulate the funds and maintain the payment of royalties. This generally means that artists need to be registered and receive a license in order to be eligible for the payments of royalties.
Musicians on the other hand have more to worry about. The country possess only a few radio stations which have to cater hundreds of artists daily. The question is what will be the criteria of choosing the music to be played on the radio as there had been some concerns about the selection of the music played on radio over the years. .
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