Trinidad Guardian - By Kim Boodram
THE Percussive Harmonic Instrument (PHI) pan will now have a home with The University of the West Indies (UWI) in St Augustine, ending a battle for control of the patent and profits between its creators and the State.
Attorney General Anand Ramlogan yesterday announced an arbitration had been reached between the parties, and the patent for the new pan, which he said has astounding marketing potential, will reside with UWI, the professional home of Prof Brian Copeland, who spearheaded creation of the instrument.
Since July 2011, the State has been locked in battle with Copeland, chairman of the Steelpan Initiative Committee, and his associates over ownership of the new electronic pan.
Copeland and company had claimed rights to the patent, saying the pan was invented by them and $33 million allotted to the project by the State was gratuitous and was not to be sought by the giver.
Copeland is also part of the former board of special purposes company e-Teck, which is being sued by the State for the mismanagement of funds.
Arbitration was reached in July, Ramlogan said, speaking at a media conference after Divali celebrations at the Office of the Attorney General at St Vincent Street, Port of Spain.
With the patent held on trust for the Government by UWI, profits coming out of the sale and marketing of the pan will now be split in thirds among Copeland and associates, UWI and the State, Ramlogan said.
Replies
I must have misunderstood the ramifications… UWI splits any profits equally for themselves, gov't and inventor…seems fair.
How much profit are we talking about? There are competing products on the market now.
Quite often, you see a company or an investor claim that the achievement of an inventor belongs to them "because they worked here" or "because it was our money that made it possible"… Why try to accomplish anything if someone else will take credit for your idea, and you get none? I know "someone else" is TnT government and taxpayer, so how much credit should be taken from the inventor? In Canada, the government has programs for funding grants in artistic or scientific endeavours… even CD recordings. But if I get a grant to make a CD, I don't have to send the profits to the government. I read this as a "David and Goliath" story that has worked out, and the P.H.I. can be marketed.
Now that the TnT government has a pan-related revenue stream through this arbitration, maybe they should be coming up with a legacy fund for the pan pioneers….
Everybody continues to get paid, but the local, hard-working, taxpaying panmen and panwomen of Trinidad and Tobago. I fail to see why anyone would congratulate any of the three who stand to benefit, for at the end of it all, NOBODY ELSE stands to benefit. This AG, this "government", Pan Trinbago, Dr. Brian Copeland, the "E" dude and his harem, ALL make me SICK! Trinidad and Tobago has become a country of bandits...from "White Collar" to "Black Colour". smh. We WILL pay for our choices (as a "nation"); look at what my beautiful country and her people have become; a den of thieves. Led by thieves! These people have absolutely NO consciences; robbing poor people of their hard-earned money, and exploiting our steelband culture. A day is coming, when NO amount of money will be able to save them from their demises, and they WILL become powerless, as the masses become more informed and better "educated". Not in academic terms, but in the pedagogical sense. It already has begun the World over, and if we think, in our false sense of security, that Trinidad and Tobago (and the steelbands) are immune to revolution, we will be in for a BIG SURPRISE. To date, EVERYTHING that I predicted would happen, has either happened, or the wheels have already begun turning. From the "Greens" to the ATTSDC, I have exposed the exploiters of our culture. The AG, UWI, and Dr. Copeland seem to think that ALL are fooled by their closed-door negotiations that led to this dividing up of taxpayers' investments. Absolutely immoral! That is all I have to say.
Ghost Who Knows A Con Job When He Sees One. (ON THAT, I congratulate Dr. Copeland.)
Ghost, One think I can say about your Dad, If he was alive, he would find some way or some how to make sure that Spree, Jules, Ellie, Anthony Williams and Bertie get some type of Royalty. Your Father fought for the rights of the people, he don't lick nobody behind.
What a disaster. What now happens to the families of the like of Spree, Marshall and their entitlement to the royalties from the classical pan?? I hear people talk a lot about reparations. This is the immediate past, what about a portion of the royalties going to the original innovators of pan.
I agree with that, Alphonso ... reparation (in the form of royalties as well as licensing fees if legally appropriate) SHOULD be granted to the original inventors/promoters/marketers you named.
That said, I still think the final resolution of the issue is a great result for pan as a whole.
Peter
My question is:
Does the fact that Copeland was also on the board of e-Teck represent a conflict of interests?
I guess the court had to have decided that question in the course of it's decision.
Peter
Did the state supply the funds to develop an ELECTRONIC pan?
Copeland was an employee of UWI and the Taxpayers of TT funded the project 100% - PHI belong to TT Taxpayers!!!! so is the G-Pan...
Said that in the Guardian... $12MM? It's strange that the government has more ownership than the extent of funding University research. What will be will be.
Congratulations, Dr, Copeland, on reaching a resolution. We should see production and marketing of P.H.I. resume soon.