Comment from Alvin Buenaventura, Filipinas Copyright Licensing Society

Following USTR’s recommendation to address the challenges in IPR protection and enforcement in the Philippines, the Anti-Book Piracy Coalition was formed. ABC is a public-private partnership output. Initiated by the National Book Development Board, it aims to combat all forms of book piracy in the country. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed on 26 May 2010 by IP Philippines DG Ricardo Blancaflor, NBDB Chair Dennis Gonzalez, Optical Media Board Chair Ronald Ricketts, Philippine National Police DG Jesus Verzosa, and National Bureau of Investigation Director Nestor Mantaring. Private sector signatories were Book Development Association of the Philippines President Lirio Sandoval and Filipinas Copyright Licensing Society Chair Virgilio Almario. ABC’s enforcement activity involves US and UK books made into “book-alikes” by copy shops. Enforcement was stalled due to the difficulty in getting Power of Attorney from foreign rights holders. The Association of American Publishers recommended that the Philippines should take enforcement action against book pirates. Now that the ABC is here, the AAP became slow in providing the needed POAs. The ABC expected the AAP to provide the POAs on a reasonable and timely manner but half a year later there is still no enforcement because there are no POAs. At the annual general meeting of the International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organizations in Boston last October, I met Luisa Simpson, AAP’s head for International Copyright Enforcement and Trade Policy. She said that the AAP already possess the POA from US rights holders. The only thing missing are the UK POAs. If the AAP is really interested in enforcement then they should give the POAs and order their law firm in Manila to cooperate with the ABC. AAP should not wait for the UK POAs. The GRP, BDAP, and FILCOLS are working together to eradicate book piracy but the AAP, the loudest complainer, is nowhere to be found. AAP should complain less and cooperate more.