Collection Society NORM has issued a multi-million rand summons against ExactMobile, claiming unpaid royalties due on digital downloads sold by Exact Mobile, the Primedia Ltd controlled Johannesburg-based mobile content provider.

According to the summons, NORM has asked for an order in terms of which Exact Mobile must cease infringing the copyright of NORM’s members and pay a royalty of 7,5% which it regards as reasonable, backdated to 1 January 2006. NORM is also asking for R2-million as additional damages as a result of the continued sale of mobile content containing copyrights controlled by 11 of its members, in contravention of the Copyright Act.

At the centre of the dispute between NORM and Exact Mobile is the mechanical royalty rate that arises when the Wireless Application Service Provider records licensed works belonging to NORM’s members into digital files for use as ringtones on cellular phones.

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