Musician Lameck Ditto loses Sh6 billion case against MultiChoice Tanzania

Dar es Salaam. In a ruling that has left the plaintiff, musician Lameck Ditto, fuming, the High Court has dismissed his copyright infringement case against Multichoice Tanzania Limited.

Ditto, whose real name is Dotto Bwakeya, filed a lawsuit in 2020 requesting that the court order Multichoice to pay him Sh6 billion in damages.

He alleged that the company used his song ‘Nchi Yangu’ in their commercials during the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) campaigns without his consent.

He also requested the court to order Multichoice to pay him Sh200 million in general damages together with interest of 25 percent per annum from the date he filed the suit, claiming that the company had denied him the opportunity to benefit from his work.

The ruling, signed by Judge Salma Maghimbi, who was not present in court, was read by the court's deputy registrar, Mery Moyo, on July 23, 2024.

Moyo stated that the song used by Multichoice was not the original track owned by Ditto.

Before reading the ten-page ruling, Moyo said that it had been issued by Judge Maghimbi and that she had been instructed to read it.

Moyo started by explaining that copyright is a legal term referring to the rights of the creator of a work, including music, and encompasses the legal protection of their original creations.

She said that copyright protects an original work that has been created.

In the ruling, she outlined the reliefs that Ditto had sought in the case and noted that attempts to resolve the matter through civil procedure had been unsuccessful.

He has mentioned five points accepted in the case, the first of which is whether the plaintiff (Ditto) owns the song ‘Nchi Yangu’.

The second issue was whether the defendant used the song.

The third issue was whether the song was the one that the claimant claimed to be his.

The fourth issue was whether the defendant's use of the claimant's song constituted a breach of the claimant's rights, and the fifth issue was what reliefs both parties were entitled to.

In the ruling, she said that the first issue did not need to be discussed as there was no dispute over the copyright of the song, which has been copyrighted by Ditto since 2019.

"The remaining key issues for discussion are issues two to five," Moyo said, stating that the song ‘Nchi Yangu’ used by Multichoice was not Ditto's original track and noted that the song used was specifically created for a campaign promoting peace and love.

Outside the court, Ditto expressed his dissatisfaction with the ruling, stating that he would consult with his lawyers to determine the next steps.

"I have received the judgement, although I am not satisfied with it. It is known everywhere that the copyright belongs to the original owner. In the judgement, the court did not deny that I am the owner of the song 'Nchi Yangu', but it says that Multichoice did not use the original song, which is mine; they used the second version, so who owns that song?" Ditto questioned bitterly.

In the case, Ditto presented five witnesses, while Multichoice had two witnesses, Astrid Mapunda and Johnson Mshana, who were led by lawyers Simon Lyimo and Thomas Mathias.

On Ditto's side, some of his witnesses were the song's producer, Emmanuel Maungu (Emma the boy), his manager, Rodney Rugambo and Angela Karashani, who were led by lawyers Ally Hamza, Elizabeth Mlemeta, and Samson Lukumay.