IPOPHL HIGHLIGHTS RELEVANCE OF COLLECTIVE MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATIONS

Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) Deputy Director General (DDG) Allan Gepty addressed executives of the World Intellectual Property Organization, International Federation of the Photographic Industry, Societies’ Council for the Collective Management of Performers’ Rights and local performing arts stakeholders during the Workshop on Collective Management of Performers’ and Producers’ Rights last April 24. In his opening remarks, DDG Gepty highlighted the importance of Collective Management Organizations (CMOs) in managing the bundle of copyrights that their members own, by providing the legal platform to efficiently enforce their intellectual property (IP) rights. Under the copyright system, a creative or literary work is protected at the moment of its creation, and creators have exclusive powers to carry out, authorize and prevent the exercise of these rights. Gepty also cited the potential power of creativity that can be harnessed fromFilipino youths, since the Philippines, in a few years’ time, will have a young population managing the economy of the country. He also discussed the conflicting roles of technology as a tool of protecting IP rights and as a tool to commit IPR violations.The Workshop was one of the major events lined-up by IPOPHL in celebration of the National IP Rights Month this April as declared by Pres. Rodrigo Duterte via Procalamation 190, and the World IP Day on the 26^th of April.