The Piracy – WILBER

ANTI-PIRACY LAW

A law that makes the copying and distribution of copyrighted material (music, films, etc.) illegal. This is also the (illegal) mass sharing or distribution of copyrighted material such as music, films books, product, and the like.

Anti-piracy measures are efforts to fight against copyright infringement, counterfeiting, and other violations of intellectual property laws. It includes, but is by no means limited to, the combined efforts of corporate associations, law enforcement agencies, and various international governments to combat copyright infringement relating to various types of creative works, such as software, music, arts, and films.

What are the three main parts of RA 8293? The important provisions of the IP Code of the Philippines include among others (1) laws on patents, (2) laws on trademarks, service marks, and trade names, and (3) laws on copyright. The Law on Patents (Part II). The salient provisions under the law of patents stipulate the patentable inventions and the right to a patent.

The use of the word “piracy” in these situations, saying that publishers use the word to refer to “copying they don’t approve of” and that “they [publishers] imply that it is ethically equivalent to attacking ships on the high seas, kidnapping and murdering the people on them.” Certain forms of Anti-Piracy, are considered by consumers to control the use of the content of the product after the sale. (Picture source below: https://www.pandasecurity.com/en/mediacenter/src/uploads/2019/07/software-piracy-SEO-software.png)

Digital piracy, mostly in urban areas nationwide has gained so much notoriety. The danger posed by piracy greatly affected the private industry in its effort to maximize its profit over its loss. Software, movies, and classical songs were smuggled and sold at a much lower price than those with complete legal documents. The same with fake and counterfeit products that are sold in some high-end malls in the country ranging from watches, jewelry, clothing apparel, bags, and shoes, including antique products.

Prior to the creation of the Videogram Regulatory Board, the Republic Act 8792 already define and provide punishment for piracy in Sec. 33 (b) of the law, read the context below:

b) Piracy or the unauthorized copying, reproduction, dissemination, distribution, importation, use, removal, alteration, substitution, modification, storage, uploading, downloading, communication, making available to the public, or broadcasting of protected material, electronic signature, or copyrighted works including legally protected sound recordings or phonograms or information material on protected works, through the use of telecommunication networks, such as but not limited to, the internet, in a manner that infringes intellectual property rights shall be punished by a minimum fine of one hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00) and a maximum commensurate to the damage incurred and mandatory imprisonment of six (6) months to three (3) years; c) Violations of the Consumer Act or Republic Act No. 7394 and other relevant or pertinent laws through transactions covered by or using electronic data messages or electronic documents, shall be penalized with the same penalties as provided in those laws; d) Other violations of the provisions of this Act, shall be penalized with a maximum penalty of one million pesos (P1,000,000.00) or six (6) years imprisonment.

The Videogram Regulatory Board (VRB) has destroyed over Php billion worth of fake CD’ & DVDs, most of which were seized from Metro Manila and the Visayas, and the Mindanao Regions. This calls for the enactment of the Republic Act 9239. This time the following provisions of the law are emphasized to give more teeth and deter violators of Intellectual Property Rights Law, especially digital music and movies.

Republic Act 9239, Section 19. Offenses and Penalties:

(a) Imprisonment of at least three (3) years but not more than six (6) years, and a fine of not less than Five Hundred thousand pesos (Php 500,000.00) but not exceeding One Million five hundred thousand pesos (Php 1,500,000.00), at the discretion of the Court, shall be imposed on any person, natural or juridical, who shall:

Engage in the importation, exportation, acquisition, sale, or distribution of, possess or operate manufacturing equipment, parts, and accessories without the necessary licenses from the OMB;
Engage in the mastering, manufacture, replication, importation, or exportation of optical media without the necessary license from the OMB;
By himself, or through another, cause the mastering, manufacture, or replication of any intellectual property in optical media intended for commercial profit or pecuniary gain without authority or consent of the owner thereof;
Engage in the Mastering, manufacturing, or replication of optical media without affixing or installing in the resulting products the SID Code, and/or such other codes prescribed, assigned, and authorized by the OMB. The absence of the codes prescribed, assigned, and authorized by the OMB in any optical media shall be prima facie evidence that said optical media are in violation of this Act;
Engage in the mastering, manufacture, or replication of optical media using, affixing, or installing in the resulting products false SID or other codes. The presence of false or unauthorized codes shall be prima facie evidence that said optical media are in violation of this act;
Engage in the mastering, manufacture, or replication of optical media using, affixing, or installing in the resulting products false SID or other codes that have been assigned by the OMB to another person, or, having been assigned and authorized said codes by the OMB, allow or authorize another person, establishment or entity to use, affix or install such codes in the latter’s products; (Picture source below: https://questioncopyright.org/cm/images/piracy-is-not-theft.jpg)

But this is NOT THE END OF THE PROBLEMS OF PIRACY, THAT EVEN AUTHORS OF BOOKS, JOURNALS, WOOD & STEEL CRAFTS, WINES, and many more are now VICTIMS OF PIRACY! With the advent of cyberspace added with the right technology, the computer becomes a good tool for crimes involving piracy. Republic Act 10175 alone cannot be a good tool for eradication and reduction of this problem granting poor quality of people employed to man and enforce the law, but we are hopeful that, that someday they will become successful in fighting this crime.

The same with smuggling, the quality of governance and the people behind it will be the bottom line so that this MENACE IN THE SOCIETY can be eradicated. GOOD LAWS AND INVESTIGATIVE TECHNIQUE are not of the essence if kleptocracy and corruption in the government continue.

We are through with this module, the “LAWS PENALIZING THE ORGANIZED CRIME”. You have many takeaways now, you can make use of that to be one of the best investigators in this country in terms of organized crime.

ANTI-PIRACY LAW

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