A Federal High Court in Lagos has dismissed a N1 billion lawsuit filed by Walls and Gates Ltd and its MD, Okechukwu Udeichi, against MTN Nigeria over alleged copyright infringement, breach of confidentiality, and trademark violations related to MTN’s 20th Anniversary promotion.

Key Points:

• The plaintiffs claimed MTN copied their “20 for 20” proposal submitted in 2019, seeking damages or 50% of promotion revenue.
• Justice Ayokunle Olayinka Faji ruled that the proposal was a business idea, not a copyrightable work, and that no confidential relationship existed.
• The court described the suit as frivolous, speculative, and a “gold-digging exercise”, awarding N3 million in costs to MTN.
• The judgment emphasized that ideas and business concepts are not protected under Nigerian copyright law and that MTN had no obligation to act on an unsolicited proposal.

Implication:
The ruling reinforces that copyright protects expressions, not ideas, and highlights the legal limits on claiming ownership over generic business concepts.