Pirated DVDs With 16 Movies: Is Nollywood Doomed?

this argument assumes that Nollywood and Hollywood (hate that term) videos compete with directly with each other, with the only real distinguishing feature between them being the market price of the product. and that is an idea that i've never found convincing.

i mean, they might be direct competition in some sectors, but for the most part i think they are almost parallel markets.

when i think of all the people i know who buy Hollywood videos (ugh) over Nollywood, they don't do it because the foreign movies offer a better value--they do it because they just flat-out prefer the foreign movies.

by the same token, i have seen way too many video stores where the section of foreign movies is coated with heavy layers of dust despite the fact that that they cost the same as--or less than--the popular Nollywood videos. why? because there are some people who would rather watch the homegrown movies.

the problem with this argument is that it neglects the extent to which viewers are guided by content in their choice of video entertainment. it assumes that if "Hollywood" movies cost the same as or more than Nollywood films, the Hollywood fans would be forced to go for the cheaper alternative of Nollywood films.

i don't believe it. if someone is a fan of a science fiction movie like Jumper or wants to watch the new Rambo movie, there is no equivalent substitute for those movies in Nollywood, so they are going to watch the foreign movies. even if the "Hollywood" movie costed more than it currently does, they would still find a way to watch it.

unless you are advocating completely banning foreign movies in all forms and even blocking any information about these movies from coming into Nigeria--but even then, people would still find some black market means to watch what they are actually interested in.

some people watch foreign movies because that's what they like. others watch Nollywood because that's what they identify with, and they are actually interested in Genevieve and RMD and Rita Dominic and all those people. they're not running to it because it's a cheaper alternative--in fact, they happily pay for Part 1&2, and now the current trend is to extend it to Part 3&4 by continuing the story under a different title.

no.

i don't expect to see that happen for the same reason that you hear so much American hip-hop and R&B music on the soundtrack of Nollywood movies, but you very rarely hear any contemporary Nigerian hits.

they use American hits because obviously the use of the music is unlicensed, but they know that 50 Cent or Beyonce will most likely never see the movie, let alone find them to sue for illegal use of their music. on the other hand, Tuface and Ashionye Michelle Ugbeh live right up the street; they can and will take action against anyone they find illegally using their work in Nollywood.

i recommend that you take a look at "Good Copy Bad Copy" - a documentary about how modern technology and culture are changing the way we look at copyright law http://www.goodcopybadcopy.net/

part of the documentary deals with Nollywood and piracy in Nigeria.

in one scene, a young pirate is interviewed and states that they prefer to pirate "Hollywood" movies rather than Nollywood because "if you pirate the Nollywood movie, the producers will come and get you. but the producers of the Hollywood movie are not here, so--"

the style of piracy that cripples Nollywood is different from the type that deals with the "Hollywood" films. for one thing, it mostly revolves around video clubs, overseas distribution and the marketers themselves.

once DVD players become more popular, there IS a chance that you could see Nollywood jumbo DVDs, but i largely don't see it happening anytime soon.

Is there any legislation in this country against piracy?

Since independence.  It is known as the copyright law.  Unfortunately, laws don't enforce themselves.

very effective point made here. At a point sales from DVDs wont be the most important source of nollywood's revenue.

Yahoo levels

No thanks to China, generic DVD players are retailing for N3,000 in electronic shops in Lagos. Even brand names like Philips and Samsung now go for less than N10k. Its only a matter of a couple of years before DVD players chase out VCD players completely as the youngsters are now growing up with DVDs and even digital downloads at cybercafes. I see lots of cybercafes around Lagos offering downloading of clips for ipods and high-end cellphones.



In the current business model of Nollywood, the producers actually make their money from the sale of the discs - that's why you have parts 1-4 - and not really the content. This means they have a huge incentive to resist the move to DVD but I suspect its inevitable in the long run.




@busygirl, no be only for naija wey piracy dey - i suspect that nollywood channel in london is a huge piracy scam. its doubtful if they are paying royalties to the producers and artistes in naija

You are Even talking about Buying the Movies when you have a Channel like Africa Magic, what the Heck!

@combrazor
I think the move to serial DVDs will be soon than u think and not by pirates but the producers demselves. It will b a very effective way of reselling old movies repackaged as 'omnibus' artiste issues eg RMD vs KOK type stuff. It will sell because everyone luvs a good deal.

I agree with you bro it might be a piracy scam because if really the revenue generated from there is getting to the producers/marketer most of them would not be keen to sell Disc instead of movies.

Most of the producers prolong the parts of the movies just to gain more bucks.

let them sell 400 films on 1 DVD, but they should please stop the adverts in-between movies. That is a terrible act. someone should please talk to them. what sort of business strategy is that?

u people have said it all. But to me, it will not really affect their buinesses. It will only affect the rental services business, which they all kick against. Because people will prefer to buy 16 movies for N300 than renting 1 for N 50. 

Not if is a nu one

Totally agree with combrazo's point. The market for hollywood and nollywood movies consists of two distinct population. Each population tends to lean heavily onto one and this is not driven by price. I for one would prefer a Will Smith flick anyday to a Ramsey Nouah movie even if they cost the same.

@ Seun, Thanks this is so true. Since independence. 

This is so true, in one of the rental place i go to, the rental guy used to BEG! me to take 3 foreign movies for just 20naira!. There is little or no comparison between foreign and African movies. Honestly, the last time i paid for foreign movie was like, hmmmmmmmmmmmm can't recall, but African was like today.