The Manila Times reported earlier this month that the major Filipino telecommunications company Globe Telecom is urging stronger action against online piracy, stating that “Every illegal download is a peso taken away from Filipino artists and the economy.” You can read the company’s statement below.
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“The creative industry has the potential to be one of the Philippines’ most powerful drivers of growth. Protecting it from piracy means protecting jobs, investments, and the future of Filipino talent,” Globe president and CEO Carl Cruz said. “Every illegal download is a peso taken from Filipino artists and the economy. We cannot allow illegal sites to rob creators of their hard work and deprive the economy of billions in value.“
The Manila Times adds that Globe is urging Congress to refile and pass site-blocking laws to further empower the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL), and that Globe is ready to comply with site-blocking orders once the new law is enacted. Any new law would succeed the IPOPHL’s non-binding Rules on Voluntary Administrative Site Blocking (“Site Blocking Rules”) or Memorandum Circular No. 2023-025, which became effective on January 14, 2024.
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Under the Rules, a rightsholder can submit a complaint to the IPOPHL, and once verified, the IPOPHL issues a request to an ISP to block or disable a piracy website and to prevent attempts to circumvent the blocking order. The ISP is not required to act on this. However, IPOPHL signed a Memorandum of Understanding with ISPs, such as Globe Telecom, Inc., Smart Communications, Inc., PLDT, Inc., Sky Cable Corp., and DITO Telecommunity Corp., which agreed to block websites at the IPOPHL’s request (via Cruz Marcelo & Tenefrancia).
Globe previously celebrated House Bill 7600, a bill strengthening the IPOPHL’s powers, when it passed its third and final reading in the House of Representatives in May 2023. Group Chief Sustainability and Corporate Communications Officer Yoly Crisanto said at the time (via Advanced Television), “The Globe Group congratulates Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda for steering House Bill No. 7600 towards its triumphant passage at the House. This is a landmark achievement for the creative industry, with the bill a step closer to becoming a law. We are inching closer towards ensuring more stringent protection for our content creators and their livelihood.” It’s under consideration in the Senate as of April 2024.
House Bill 7600 amends the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines to increase (where the total damages claimed are not less than 200,000 pesos) the minimum administrative fines for violations to 100,000 pesos (previously 5,000), the maximum fines to 1 million pesos (previously 150,000), and daily fines for continued non-compliance from 1,000 pesos to 10,000 pesos. It also allows the IPOPHL to visit establishments suspected of violating the prospective Act, and issue mandatory orders to block sites that it finds make available or facilitate access to pirated content (Senate website).
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Torrent Freak recently reported on the prospective U.S. site-blocking bill Block Bad Electronic Art and Recording Distributors (Block BEARD) Act of 2025, introduced by Senators Thom Tillis, Chris Coons, Marsha Blackburn, and Adam Schiff in July. This follows other recent site-blocking legislation like Representative Zoe Lofgren’s FADPA and Representative Darrell Issa’s American Copyright Protection Act (ACPA).
Source: The Manila Times
Featured image © Eiichiro Oda / Shueisha / Toei Animation
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