A consumer advocacy group asked the Senate to prioritize the approval of bills protecting creative workers and consumers from the dangers of online content piracy.
CitizenWatch Philippines and former lawmaker Atty. Kit Belmonte called on senators to pass the proposed Online Site Blocking Act (Senate Bills 2150 and 2385) which are also being pushed by the Private Sector Advisory Council.
“This administration has repeatedly emphasized the central role of digital technologies in our nation’s economic life. But technology has its pitfalls – in this case, it has become a platform for online piracy which makes it even more difficult to curb. Thus, we have to act fast,” said Belmonte.
The pending bills seek to amend and strengthen the 26-year-old Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines and give more teeth to the Intellectual Property Office to enforce anti-piracy measures.
The IP Code in its current form does not include electronic and online content in its definition of pirated goods, according to the bills’ proponents.
Belmonte said piracy kills Filipinos’ innovative spirit and deprives content creators of fair compensation for their invaluable work.
“Original content is what makes creators unique and indispensable to society. The creative industry is already threatened by untrammeled artificial intelligence. It needs to be protected from those who seek to profit easily and unfairly,” Belmonte said.
He said the resulting erosion of morale would eventually cause creative workers to pursue other fields, thus endangering the viability and spirit of the arts.
“The current cyber landscape is haven for cyber criminals stealing intellectual and real property of netizens. No one is safe,” he said.
“The operators of piracy websites are making a big killing out of the hard works and big investments of producers and creators of original content,” Belmonte said.
