PRACTICAL IMPLICATION OF THE AMENDMENT OF THE NTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW

                 


                         Intellectual property in our county is recognized by the government as important to the development of national activities in our country whether trade or non-trade. It is imperative that the national government safeguard the intellectual properties of individuals in our country. Intellectual property is one of the most important property that a Filipino Citizen has.

  
  
                 SECTION 6. The organizational Structure of IPO

“SEC. 6. The Organizational Structure of the IPO. – x x x

“6.2. The Office shall be divided into seven (7) Bureaus, each of which shall be headed by a Director and assisted by an Assistant Director. These Bureaus are:

“x x x

“(f) The Administrative, Financial and Personnel Services Bureau; and

“(g) The Bureau of Copyright and Other Related Rights.” (source: RA 10372)

The addition of the Bureau of Copyright and Other Related rights made enlarges the scope and protection that the Organizational Structure of IPO can provide to individuals who has rights being protected by the said law. There will be more concerns that will be meet because each and every Bureau has their own agendas and that the needs of individuals will be easily meet and that problems with regarding Intellectual Property right will be resolved immediately.

 

(source: google images)

SECTION 7. The Director General and Deputies Director General

         “(c) Undertake enforcement functions supported by concerned agencies such as the Philippine National Police, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Customs, the Optical Media Board, and the local government units, among others (source: RA 10372)

The adding-on of  the concerned agencies like the Philippine National Police, the National Bureau of Investigation The Bureau of Customs, the Optical Media Board, and the Local Government Units has intensified the fulfillment of the objective of the law.  The Philippine National Police and The National Bureau of Investigation who have duties to serve and protect the Citizens and that includes the intellectual properties of the latter. While the Bureau of Customs and the Optical Media Board, the former having direct contacts with goods that are coming and going out of the country and the latter who has the duty to promote the patronage of original copies and the legal productions of optical media.

                                                                     (source: google images)

SECTION 9A. The Bureau of Copyright and Other Related Rights

The addition of 9A.1  to 9A.4 is one way of escalating the functions of the Bureau. (source 10372)

                                                                                     (source: google images)

                               SECTION 171.3

             The inclusion of broadcasting, rebroadcasting retransmitting by cable broadcasting                          and retransmitting by satellite made the definition of communication to the public more                       comprehensible. (source: RA 10372)

(source: google images)

SECTION 183. Designation of Society

             The last sentence that was included in the last portion of Section 183 was “For the                     said    societies to enforce the rights of their members they shall first secure the               necessary accreditation from the Intellectual Property Office” provided more                                protection for the parties involved. (source: RA 10372)

(source: google images)

SEC. 184. Limitations on Copyright. 

           (1) The reproduction or distribution of published articles or materials in a specialized format exclusively for the use of the blind, visually- and reading-impaired persons: Provided, That such copies and distribution shall be made on a nonprofit basis and shall indicate the copyright owner and the date of the original publication.” (source: RA 10372)

            The reproduction or distribution of published articles or materials in a specialized                               format exclusively for the use of the blind, visually and reading impaired persons which is non-                  profit is very much beneficial to our disabled fellow countrymen.

(source: google images)

SECTION 188

“SEC. 188. Reprographic Reproduction by Libraries. – 188.1. Notwithstanding the                            provisions of Subsection 177.1., any library or archive whose activities are not for profit may,            without the authorization of the author or copyright owner, make a limited number of copies             of the work, as may be necessary for such institutions to fulfill their mandate, by reprographic           reproduction:

      “(c) Where the making of such limited copies is in order to preserve and, if necessary in the event that it is lost, destroyed or rendered unusable, replace a copy, or to replace, in the permanent collection of another similar library or archive, a copy which has been lost, destroyed or rendered unusable and copies are not available with the publisher.”  (source: RA 10372)

       Before the amendment of Section 188  only a  single copy can be made but in the new                   amendments the library or archive whose activities are not for profit may make a  limited                     number of copies, this revision is more effective and practical in cases of lost or deterioration         of original copies.

                                                                                (source: google images)

             SECTION 198 Term of Moral Rights

          Before the amendment the time limit after the death of the author is 50 years but now it’s                     already perpetuity after his death, the term of moral rights when it comes to intellectual                               properties deserves a lifetime protection.

(source: google images)

2            SECTION 216 Infringement

  

     The elements found in section 216  is simpler and more comprehensible compared to the                         one before the revision was made.

(source: google images)

Magna Carta For Internet Freedom

"NOTHING  IS  PERFECT". No human being is perfect and so is the "MAGNA CARTA FOR THE INTERNET FREEDOM".

I was really overwhelmed on how the Magna Carta For Philippine Internet Freedom protected The Right to Privacy and strengthen the Right to Freedom of Speech  at the same time. 

The right to privacy is a right inherent in every Filipino Citizen which may restrain anyone including the government, to do acts that may jeopardize  the privacy of individuals

                                                                 (source: google images)

While Freedom of speech is the political right to communicate one's opinions and ideas using one's body and property to anyone who is willing to receive them

                                                      (source: google images)

Before discussing my suggestions for the improvement of  some of the parts of Senate No. 53, I would like to recognized the parts of the said Law which upon reading gave me “goosebumps” because I felt the genuine love and concern of the drafters of the said law to our fellow Filipino Citizens specifically to women and children.

Specifically Section 49 and Section 50 of Senate No. 53 wherein Section 49 tackles about the internet being used for deceiving or defrauding another which to my mind can also be considered as “ESTAFA”, and Section 50 talks about Prostitution and Trafficking in Persons, which is a matter regarded as harmful and needing to be dealt with and overcome in our country.

Estafa is a criminal offense wherein a person defrauds another by any of the following means: (1) by unfaithfulness or abuse of confidence; (2) by deceit; or (3) fraudulent means.

Estafa through deceit or fraudulent acts executed prior to or simultaneously with the commission of the fraud is done by: (1) using fictitious name as means of deceit; (2) altering quality, fineness or weight of anything pertaining to art or business; (3) by issuing unfunded checks or postdated checks; and (4) availing of services of hotel, inn, restaurants etc, without paying therefor. So the complainant for estafa aside from the filing the later can also file a case based on Section 49 that is Fraud via ICT, if the criminal act was done using the internet. (source: revised penal code)

                                                          (source: google images)

Women and children who engages in activities called prostitution are endangered and is more prone to have  AIDS, and other sexually transmitted disease and be a victim of rape and murder.

 The program imbestigador of  GMA - 7 serves as an instrument on how chronic these problems are .

                                                             (source: youtube)

 Based on what I have researched according to surveys of women working as masseuses indicated that 34 percent of them explained their choice of work as necessary to support poor parents, 8% to support siblings, and 28% to support husbands or boyfriends. More than 20% said the job was well paid, but only 2% said it was easy work, and only 2% claimed to enjoy the work. (source: wikipedia)

(source: google images)

Further, the following sections only showed intensified patriotism and served as an inspiration to those who have low self-esteem by reason of their disabilities

Section 15. Strategic objectives of the DICT. – In fulfilling its mandate, the DICT shall be guided by the following strategic objectives:

(l) Encourage the use of ICT in support of efforts or endeavors for the development and promotion of the country’s agriculture, arts and culture, history, education, public health and safety, and other socio-civic purposes;

(n) Empower, through the use of ICT, the disadvantaged segments of the population, including persons with disabilities (PWDs) or who are differently-abled.

(source: google images)

              But since the actual objective of this blog is to share my comments and suggestion for the betterment of  (Senate No. 53) The Magna Carta for Internet Freedom, I will now discuss which to me and in my own understanding and interpretation of Senate No. 53,  can be considered as a doubtful and difficult question of law.

              1 .   Section 4. Right to freedom of speech and expression on the Internet. 

             b) A person’s right to publish content on the Internet, or to remove one’s own published content or uploaded data, is recognized as integral to the constitutional right to free expression and shall not be subject to any licensing requirement from the State. (source: S.B. 53)

                

              The lawmakers should have specifically identified the kind of published content or uploaded data a person has the right to publish and remove, what if the data uploaded and published by a person has already caused harm to someone else's name before the publisher - offender has deleted the said data, the drafters should specify the kind of data، it should be those that are not harmful to anybody and this provision should be subject to some limitations 

               (d) No person shall be compelled to remove published content or uploaded data from the Internet that is beyond the said person’s capacity to remove. (source: S.B.53)

            It is uncertain on  how can a person not have the capacity to remove one’s post when he/she has the capacity to published it, the objective of Section 4-d is ambiguous, the kind of incapacity should be thoroughly discussed by the lawmakers. 

             2 .Section 5. Promotion of universal access to the Internet.

               (b) A person’s right to unrestricted access to the Internet may, upon discretion of the appropriate Cybercrime Court whose jurisdiction is defined in this Act, be suspended as an accessory penalty upon final conviction for criminal offeses specfied therein. (source: S.B. 53)

              The means on how can the Cybercrime Court put a restriction to a person’s right to Internet Freedom should be clearly identified because of the reality that wireless networks is readily available almost everywhere and most of the time it's for free. The person should only be restricted to have an access to the specific website  he used to commit the offenses specified under Section 5b- I, II and III. 

            3 . Section 19. Regional Offices. – Subject to the concurrence of the Department of Budget and Management and the approval of the President, the DICT may be authorized to establish, operate and maintain a regional office in each of the administrative regions of the country, as the need arises (source: S.B. 53)

             I have nothing against the Magna Carta for Internet Freedom, I just think  that the lawmakers will need a huge amount of money to be able to fully put into force T he Magna Carta for Internet Freedom, while in truth in fact we are well aware that there are other problems that the country is facing that needs to be fix immediately. 

4 . And lastly Sections 46. Violation of Data Security specifically the portion the discusses about  (a) Hacking. – (source: S.B. 53)

            Based on what I have learned from the subject Technology and the Law, there are actually 2 kinds of hackers , the good hackers and the bad hackers, the bad hackers are those that can be penalized under this law specifically Section 46-A. But what about the good hackers? Those that saved us from the bad ones, should they also be penalized? If they will be penalized, who will now regain the access to our government websites from the "BITTER"  Chinese? The lawmakers should be more specifc and sensitive to the reality and needs nowadays.