Piracy, distribution and marketing encumbrances in the Nigerian video-film industry

*FEMI OLUGBOJI, Ph.D. Abstract Nigeria had a robust celuloid film tradition from the colonial era, which metamophorsed into thepopular video-film culture in the late 1980s. This made the sector to gain widespread academic attention, but there appears a dearth of scholarship in the areas of piracy, distribution and marketing. Therefore, this study examined the issue of piracy, distribution and marketing in the industry, and ascertained the challenges faced by stakeholders, in respect of these key areas.The study is nested in the Stakeholders theory that espouses organizational management, business ethics and control vis-à-vis the key players of the film industry, such as producers, marketers, distributors, cinema-house operators, regulators, and consumers. However, its methodology involved a literature search, interview of keyplayers, and observations of goings-on in the sector.Findings indicated thatfilm distribution and marketing during the post-colonial era to the 1980s in Nigeria was dominated by foreigners who ran a monopoly with commercial motive, and no agenda for culture propagation, hence the dominance of foreign films. Moreover, amidst competition and disorganisation, the popular video-film tradition that evolved from the late 1980s is overwhelmed by extensive piracy of productions by criminal cartels that weilded firm control over its distribution and marketing.Consequently, producers and other stakeholders appear helpless as they suffer from piracy encumbrances. Thus, this study profess the adoption of stringent and creative measures by stakeholders in order to overcome piracy and ensure effective distribution and marketing of film productions in Nigeria. Key Words: Nigeria; Nigerian Video-Film; Piracy; Film Distribution and Marketing; Stakeholder. JCMR Journal of Communication and Media Research, Vol. 12, No. 2, October 2020, pp. 166-175 © Association of Media and Communication Researchers of Nigeria (AMCRON). About the author * Femi Olugboji, Ph.D. is a lecturer in the School of Communication, Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos, Nigeria. His areas of academic interests/specialisation are Media Studies/Arts, Criticism, Theatre and Film Studies. He is also a creative writer in the areas of prose, poetry and drama. Full Article Words: 7,231 Pages: 10 To access full article, click on download. Article Citation Olugboji, F. (2020). Piracy, distribution and marketing encumbrances in the Nigerian video-film industry. Journal of Communication and Media Research, 12 (2): 166 – 175.