South African court rejects Sands masters claim
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Times of Eswatini
South Africa's High Court has rejected ICON PB's claim, linked to promoter Phila Dlamini, to ownership of the original recordings of the album Sands of Time. The ruling ends the copyright proceedings and comes amid a dispute also involving E411,053.80 in royalties, according to Times of Eswatini.
South Africa's High Court on Thursday dismissed ICON PB (Pty) Ltd, a company linked to Eswatini entertainment promoter Phila Dlamini, which was claiming ownership of the master recordings of musician Sandziso Matsebula's debut album, known as Sands, according to a judgment reported by the Times of Eswatini. The company was ordered to pay costs.
Judge Cyril Maphanga ruled that ICON PB had failed to establish a right to the recordings because it had not produced a written agreement signed by the artist or his representative transferring the copyright. ICON PB also sought an order preventing Sands and Kingdom Tales (Pty) Ltd, the second defendant, from exploiting the album's master recordings. Sands was represented by lawyer Bahle Nkonyane of Magagula and Hlophe Attorneys.
The dispute dates back to 2019, when ICON PB sued distribution company Content Connect Africa before the Johannesburg High Court following a disagreement over the album's royalties. Content Connect Africa had collected E483,953.80 in gross revenue from distribution, of which E72,900 was paid to ICON PB, representing about 15.1% of the total. The amount in dispute was E411,053.80 in unpaid royalties.
