Anti-piracy alliance to boost Philippine creative industry
May 20, 2021CitizenWatch Philippines fully supports the partnership forged by The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL), the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), major Philippine Internet Service Providers (ISPs), and the Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) in an effort to block off websites with pirated content.
Internet Service Providers such as Globe Telecom, PLDT, Smart Communications, Converge ICT Solutions, Sky Cable Corp, and DITO Telecommunity Corp. have already committed to the anti-piracy partnership.
We have to recognize that online piracy, aside from being an attack on intellectual property, also attacks the legitimate subscription industry which loses an estimated $120 million annually due to illegal streaming and sharing.
In September 2020, a YouGov survey identified the Philippine domestic film and television industry as having one of the highest piracy rates in Asia with 49% of respondents admitting to accessing piracy streaming sites.!
Despite being seemingly harmless, digital piracy makes creative industries suffer huge economic losses which prevents them from properly compensating artists and providing legitimate employment opportunities.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and with 4 million unemployed Filipinos, it is imperative that we address piracy as a legitimate concern so that we may not only uphold intellectual property rights, but also safeguard the livelihood of thousands of Filipinos working in the film and television industries.