The Minister of Law and Human Rights (Yasona Laoly) has established the Collective Management Body (Lembaga Manajemen Kolektif Nasional), which is tasked with collecting music royalties in Indonesia.
Rhoma Irama - famous for his popular 'dangdut’ songs, and for dipping his toes in politics in Jakarta last governatorial election - has been appointed as a Commissioner (see Jakarta Post story here). So too have eight others (see DGIP press release here). The Commissioners have been tasked with administering the Collective Management Body and supervising the collection of royalties from entertainment venues - including from karaoke lounges, hotels, and television stations.
Up until now, the collection of royalties has been very loosely policed, if at all. One example of positive action was last year’s criminal action against five major karaoke chains (see here). The move to tighten things up is a welcome one, and evidence that Indonesia’s new government does appear to be serious about developing the country’s creative economy.
(The Director-General of Intellectual Property,
and the new Collective Management Body Commissioners)