Make it real

Notice that in almost every busy street corner you’d find a table or two overflowing with copies of the latest movies (even those that are still to be shown in cinemas), TV series, softwares and games.

As much as people know that these items were illegally obtained, it could not be helped that many still patronize these stalls, simply because they find the price much more reasonable.

Imagine shelling out at most P1000 (based on eBay.ph) for an original DVD copy of Kimmy Dora, or thousands for a Microsoft Office program, which would only become obsolete the next year. Originals just seem impractical and unreasonable.

And then, there are designer apparels, bags, and what-have-you. People just want to be seen with the labels, but since majority can’t afford them, they go for the next best thing. Instead of going to boutiques they scour ukay-ukay shops for hand-me-downs, overruns, and fakes.

This dilemma has for years hounded the creative industry, as it not only discourages potential hit makers from giving their all, it also steals a large chunk of the profit that’s supposed to go to multinational companies that have been given the sole authority to produce and reproduce these items.

Perhaps this is the reason why one local celebrity quipped that if one could not afford the original then don’t buy an imitation, which simply says, “Don’t buy stuffs you can’t afford.” A practical advice for us to have a lifestyle that is prudent, humble, and simple. And why not?

However, to combat piracy and to promote the use and patronage of original items, a coalition of intellectual property advocates decided to come up with a seal that will be donned by establishments who have the reputation of trading only with original products.

Dubbed as the IP Seal Project, the IP Coalition, together with the Department of Trade and Industry, Intellectual Property Philippines, and Pilipinas Anti-Piracy Team, came up with a design that speaks a lot of the group’s goals.

Their objective “is to educate the public that compliance with IP standards and best practices means assurance of quality, safety, excellence and a legitimate source or origin.”

Last May 5, two private companies were the first to be given the seal during its launching in Cebu: Campaigns Cebu and Ayala Center Cebu.

Nelia Navarro, provincial director for DTI, revealed that IP patents grow as fast as the growth of trade of goods. She said that intellectual property rights equate to national competitiveness because investors would be attracted to countries with strong IP protection.

“Cebuanos have a defined vision for the province and that is, we want to be an innovation island in technology,” she said. In fact, Navarro said that the British Council even declared Cebu as a Creative City, and this she credits to the Cebuanos’ mindset of getting only the best.

“Cebuanos have a mindset. (They) go for excellence, and they go for whatever is good for Cebu,” she said.

Eduardo Sazon of IP Coalition, on the other hand, said that the IP seal will be a brand of recognition for businesses committed in promoting IP rights.

“The IP seal tells the public that his products and services are of quality, coming from a legitimate source,” said Atty. Jun Rodriguez, secretary general of IP Coalition.

“We want to make IP rights a way of life,” he added. “(Let us) bring back the excitement towards legitimate products, rather than be friendly with infringing products.”

And, why not? It’s time to be real. Let us buy responsibly and let us start patronizing companies with the IP seal. ?