A
photographer, Mr. Emmanuel Okolo, has filed a N120m copyright infringement suit
against musician Innocent Idiabia, popularly known as 2face, and wife, Annie.
The
photographer sued the couple and one Mr. Anthonio Anifite before Justice
Mohammed Idris of a Federal High Court in Lagos.
He
alleged that the defendants made use of some photographs he took at the
traditional wedding of Mr. and Mrs. Idibia in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State in 2013
without duly attributing the works to him or acknowledging him contrary to an
alleged agreement.
The
photographer, who sued alongside his company, Papilonmexy Films Studios
Limited, claimed that the defendants wrote ‘2faceonline.com’ across 148 out of
the 355 high-resolution photographs he took at the couple’s wedding and
uploaded them on 2face’s official website, thereby denying him credit and
referral opportunities.
He
claimed that days after the wedding, Annie called him on the telephone
requesting copies of the wedding photographs and that upon sending them to her,
Annie complained about the watermark of Papilomenxy studios reflecting on them.
According
to the photographer, Annie later sent the 2nd defendant to negotiate with the
photographer on the terms that the photographs should be released without
watermarks.
The
photographer claimed to have then released 355 high-resolution photographs from
the wedding to Anifite free of charge on the agreement that whenever and
wherever they were used, the copyright would be credited to his company.
He,
however, claimed that the defendants breached the terms of the signed agreement
and went ahead to write ‘2faceonline.com’ across 148 of the photographs that
they uploaded on 2face’s official website.
The
photographer, who described himself as “a certified film maker from the
prestigious London Film Academy” and an holder of a Masters of Arts degree from
Cardiff School of Creative and Cultural Industries, South Wales, United
Kingdom, claimed to have suffered general and exemplary damages for which he is
seeking N120m compensation from 2face, Annie and Anifite.
But
the defendants have not only urged Justice Idris to dismiss the photographer’s
suit but they also filed a counterclaim wherein they demanded N150m damages
from him and his studio.
They
claimed that the photographer crashed into the venue of their traditional
wedding, took pictures and circulated same for commercial gains without their
permission.
They
claimed that he was not invited but was just “one of the numerous photographers
and pseudo-professionals and artisans, who invaded the venue of the ceremonies
to eke out a living for themselves without prior consultation with or the
consent of the celebrants.”
They
claimed that soon after their wedding, they noticed some strange versions of
their wedding pictures circulating online with Papilonmexy studio watermark and
after painstaking findings, they traced them to the photographer.
They
claimed that upon locating the photographer and expressing their displeasure,
he pleaded with them while lamenting that he was hard hit by a downturn in the
still photography business and sought any future engagement with them.
They
claimed that the photographer forced the photographs on them, saying he wanted
to leverage on their popularity to get referrals.
They,
however, claimed that they told him categorically that the only condition on which
they could accept the photographs was for him to remove the watermarks of his
company, which he allegedly agreed to.”
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