By Sunday Joseph
UK-based movie producer, Tosin Abiola, has dragged actress Iyabo Ojo and Ibaka Entertainment Limited to court for claiming sole ownership of her movie “Under the Carpet.”
Abiola, popularly called Omo Brish dragged Ojo to the Federal High Court of Lagos in a suit No: FHC/L/CS/2508/2023 seeking an injunction to stop her from streaming the movie on IbakaTv App and Ibaka Tv.com, which is supposed to be today (8 December, 2023).
In the suit, Abiola is the Plaintiff/Applicant, while Ojo is the Defendant and 1st respondent and Ibaka Entertainment Limited, is the 2nd Respondent.
Court documents and Affidavit deposed to by Alfred Temitayo Ogunti of the Law firm of Habeeb Oredola and Associates showed that the plaintiff/applicant (Abiola) conceptualized the idea of financing a movie to be produced in Nigeria and shared the idea with the 1st Defendant/Respondent (Ojo) after which the parties agreed to the movie “Under the Carpet’ with the arrangement that the Applicant, as the creator and financier of the movie, will be credited as the “Executive Producer” while Ojo, who is an Influencer in the movie industry in Nigeria will be named as the Producer of the movie.
According to court papers, to the chagrin of Abiola, Ojo, after the production of the movie credited and represented herself as the Executive Producer and the Producer of the movie, thereby attributing the exclusive authorship, ownership, and intellectual property rights in the movie solely to herself contrary to the agreement between the parties on co-ownership and attribution right.
Furthermore, it was alleged that Ojo without the full consent of Abiola organized a premiere and subsequently released the movie to the cinemas. Neither was the applicant credited as Executive Producer nor did the 1st Respondent render accounts of the revenue generated by the movie at the box office to the applicant despite persistent demands.
The Affidavit also showed that Ojo, without the consent of Abiola and on the alleged deliberate misrepresentation that she is both the Executive Producer and the Producer of the movie, has entered into an agreement with the 2nd Defendant/Respondent (Ibaka Entertainment Limited) for the streaming of the movie on the IbakaTv App and Ibaka Tv.com which are streaming platforms owned by the 2nd Respondent, which is accessible to millions of viewers in 220 countries around the world.
The streaming of the movie on the 2nd Respondent’s platform is planned to commence on 8 December 2023.
Abiola contended that the display of the movie by the 2nd Respondent on its streaming platform without the authorization and/or proper credit to the Applicant as the Executive Producer of the movie would occasion a global derogatory effect and constitute irreversible damage to her right of attribution and severe breach of her intellectual property rights.
Abiola argued that there is an imminent risk that the applicant’s co-ownership right will continue to be permanently exploited by the respondents without the possibility of an adequate remedy in monetary terms.
In light of the happenings, Abiola is seeking an order of interlocutory injunction restraining Ojo and Ibaka Entertainment Limited by themselves, their servants, agents, privies, assigns or any other person howsoever described from streaming and/or distributing the movie titled “Under the Carpet” on the Ibaka TV app and Ibaka TV.com either directly or indirectly or on any other online Platform pending the hearing and determination of this suit.
She also sought an order of interlocutory injunction restraining Ojo by herself, her agents, privies, or any other person howsoever described from advertising, promoting, and/or performing acts calculated to promote or represent her as the sole owner of the copyright in the movie tided “Under the Carpet”‘ pending the hearing and determination of this Suit.
The Plaintiff further sought an order of interlocutory injunction restraining the defendant/Respondent either by herself, agents, staff, members, or privies howsoever named from interfering in any way howsoever with the subject matter of this Suit or at all, pending the hearing and determination of this suit.
As at the time of filing this report, all efforts to get Miss Abiola to comment on the matter did not yield results as she declined to make comments on the matter.
