Copyright Infringement: HABANA vs.

ROBLES

Under Philippine law, copyright infringement occurs when there is a violation of any of the exclusive
economic or moral rights granted to the copyright owner. It may also consist in aiding or abetting such
infringement. The IP Code also provides for the liability of a person who at the time when copyright
subsists in a work has in his possession an article which he knows, or ought to know, to be an infringing
copy of the work for the following purposes:
(a) selling or letting for hire, or by way of trade offering or exposing for sale or hire, the article;
(b) distributing the article for the purpose of trade, or for any other purpose to an extent that will
prejudice the rights of the copyright owner in the work; or
(c) trade exhibit of the article in public.

Q: On the Habana vs. Robles case, how does copyright infringement effect the complainant?
A: Profit Loss

On Habana vs. Robles, the complainant tried to settle the matter extra-judicially by asking Respondents
to cease and desist from selling and distributing the books and by claiming for damages due to lost
profit. Robles works Developing English Proficiency—Books 1 and 2 claim profits than the complainant
College English for Today—Book 1 and 2, and Workbook for College Freshman English. The trial court
also subscribed to the notion of Respondents that Complainant was motivated by bad faith in filing the
case due to professional jealousy. This is because the assailed books replaced Petitioner’s as official
textbook of the FEU Graduate Studies Department.

Libel Case: NEWSWEEK,INC. VS. IAC

Under Art. 353, Revised Penal Code (RPC), libel refers to a public and malicious imputation of vice or
defect, crime, real or imaginary that can cause the contempt, discredit or dishonor a person. 

Q: On the Newsweek, Inc. Vs. IAC case, how do weknow that the information is libelous or not?
A: Any person who published or exhibit any defamation in writing or other means will be held
liable for the crime of libel. Aside from the author or editor of the libelous pamphlet or book, the
business manager of a daily newspaper will also face charges for the defamation especially if he was
proven to be the author of the content or article.  In fact, all people who have active participation in the
publication where the libelous article is found will be held liable as well. 

Based on Section 4(c)(4) of R.A. 10175, in relation to Articles 353 and 355 of the Revised Penal Code,
one of the elemenst for libel case is:

“The imputation must be directed at a natural or juridical person, or one who is dead,
which requires that the post must identify the person defamed, or at the very least, the person defamed
is identifiable by a third person.”

The complaint alleged that petitioner committed libel against them by the publication of thearticle "An
Island of Fear" in their magazine. The article supposedly portrayed the island as aplace dominated by
big landowners or sugarcane planters who exploited the impoverished sugarcane laborers and brutalized
and killed them with impunity. They claim that the articleshowed a malicious use of falsehood, slanted
presentation and misrepresentation of facts, putting them in a bad light.

Petitioner argues that private respondents' complaint failed to state a cause of action because the
complaint made no allegation that anything contained in the article complained of regarding sugarcane
planters referred specifically to any one of the private respondents; that libel can be committed only
against individual reputation; and that in cases where libel is claimed to have been directed at a group,
there is actionable defamation only if the libel can be said to reach beyond the mere collectivity to do
damage to a specific, individual group member's reputation.

The Court  ruled that "in order to maintain a libel suit, it is essential that the victim be identifiable
(People vs. Monton, L-16772, November 30, 1962), although it is not necessary that he be named (19
A.L.R. 116).
Data Privacy Act: Protection for Every Individual

Republic Act No. 10173, otherwise known as the Data Privacy Act is a law that seeks to protect all
forms of information, be it private, personal, or sensitive. It is meant to cover both natural and juridical
persons involved in the processing of personal information. Virtually every country has enacted some
sort of data privacy laws to regulate how information is collected, how data subjects are informed, and
what control a data subject has over his information once it is transferred. Failure to follow applicable
data privacy may lead to fines, lawsuits, and even prohibition of a site's use in certain jurisdictions.
Navigating these laws and regulations can be daunting, but all website operators should be familiar with
data privacy laws that affect their users. 

Q: On the third case, how important is the protection of privacy for every individual?
A: Under R.A. 10173, your personal data is treated almost literally in the same way as your own
personal property. Thus, it should never be collected, processed and stored by any organization without
your explicit consent, unless otherwise provided by law.

Industry leaders have projected its continuous expansion in the coming years. Information technology,
being the backbone of the industry, is dynamic and fast-paced in all aspects. Unfortunately, these same
characteristics make the industry vulnerable to online fraud, hacking and other cybercrimes, which
greatly affects the trust of multinational corporations in investing in the Philippines. (Regional Trial
Court (RTC) of Makati City -Criminal Case No. 16-01376).

 Ethical Principles of Media Content

These days, the prevalence of mud-slinging and cyber-bashing cannot be denied. Even a simple
exchange of opinions can turn into a heated argument.  The Philippines is considered the social
networking capital of the world. Almost everyone has a social media account where they share videos,
post opinion or simply connect with loved ones. However, the freedom of expression can also be carried
to extremes.

Q: On all cases, how important are ethical principles in examining the content published on new
media?
A: Questions of media ethics address the way media practitioners – journalists, public relations (PR)
representatives, bloggers, technical support staff – resolve various types of dilemmas they face, as well
as the value judgments that media audiences make regarding media content and performance. What does
it mean to be “responsible” as a media professional?

As such questions make clear, ethics generally is not concerned with defining what is “right” and
“wrong,” which is the subject of the broader field of moral philosophy. Instead, ethics provides tools to
help navigate areas or fields in which conflicting or competing solutions may be legitimately argued.
The purpose of ethics, then, is not to provide clear-cut answers regarding what constitutes good behavior
or the “right” thing to do, but to enable people to resolve conflicts and dilemmas by asking the right
questions based on the promotion and prioritization of key ethical principles and values.