Foreign authors may sue Kazakhstan citizens for use of phonograms

Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev signed a law On ratification of the International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations, Tengrinews.kz reports citing the President’s press-service. The document was adopted amid signing of the agreement on common regulation principles in protection of intellectual property under the Customs Union and establishment of the Common Economic Space that obliges Kazakhstan to join the Roman Convention. The interstate convention is dated October 26, 1961. It contains several agreements protecting the rights of performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organizations (owners of allied rights). The document was ratified by Kazakhstan senate in January 2012. According to the convention, use of phonograms will have to be paid for in Kazakhstan. “Ratifying this convention, we will from now on comply with the international laws. Any author, whose rights are violated here, can file a lawsuit against our users of phonograms, especially radio and TV channel that broadcast videos of foreign performers. Any owner of right can go to court. It also covers the use of phonograms in restaurants,” senator and composer Tolegen Mukhametzhanov explained.