Video gaming in the Philippines

An internet café in Baliuag, Bulacan with posters of MMORPGs

Video gaming in the Philippines is an emerging industry and pastime that includes the production, sale, import/export, and playing of video games.

Game Development Industry

The Philippines is a minor player when in the game development industry. In 2011, it was reported that the local industry only has 0.02% market share of the $90 billion global industry. Majority of the game development industry is focused on outsourcing to foreign companies rather than creation of local content.[1] According to the Game Developers Association of the Philippines (GDAP), there are about 4,000 professionals representing about 60 companies are involved in the game development industry as of 2013. The Philippines primary competitors in this field is China, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.[2]

The first Filipino-developed game was Anito: Defend a Land Enraged which was released in 2003.[3]

In 2016 the French video game development company Ubisoft announced plans on establishing a subsidiary in the country, which opened on March 28, 2016 in Santa Rosa, Laguna in partnership with De La Salle University.[4][5][6]

Controversies and issues

1981 ban on video games

On November 19, 1981, President Ferdinand Marcos banned video games in the country through a presidential decree making the Philippines the first nation to ban video games. The decree was a response to complaints from parents and educators who allege that games such as Space Invaders and Asteroids were detrimental to the youth's morals, viewing them as a "destructive social enemy"[7] and "to the detriment of the public interest".[8][9] Marcos also decreed the ban of pinball machines, slot machines, and other similar gaming devices. Filipinos were given two weeks to either destroy their video games and devices or to surrender the materials to the police and army. Violators had to pay a fine amounting about $600 and face 6 months to 1 year of prison. Playing video games in the country went underground. The ban was effectively lifted following the 1986 People Power Revolution.[10][11][12]

Ban on Defense of the Ancients

While no video games are banned nationwide so far since 1986, at least one title, Defense of the Ancients, has been banned at a barangay in Dasmariñas, Cavite following complaints of delinquency issues, and two murder incidents involving youths in the area resulting from brawls in relation to the game.[13]

Copyright infringement

Unauthorized distribution of video games is a complex issue in the Philippines. Despite legislation against copyright violation, enforcement and cultural factors remain an obstacle against it in the country. Copied video games, along with warez, contribute to the underground economy of the country where video gaming is a popular form of entertainment among Filipino families. The inability of many Filipino families to afford video game software and hardware at legitimate prices leads them to turn to unlicensed goods. The Optical Media Board with cooperation with the police enforces intellectual rights law in the country.[14]

References

  1. ↑ "Game on: the present and future of game development in the Philippines". GMA News. 28 December 2011. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  2. ↑ "Game development industry booming in PHL, says GDAP". GMA News. 17 January 2013. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  3. ↑ Valderrama, Michael (19 September 2014). "The Philippines in video games". Sun Star Bacolod. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  4. ↑ Wilson, Jason (28 March 2016). "Ubisoft Philippines is the island nation's first major game studio". VentureBeat. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  5. ↑ Morris, Chris (28 March 2016). "Ubisoft Doubles Down in Southeast Asia - Fortune". Fortune. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  6. ↑ Otero, Jose (28 March 2016). "Ubisoft Opens a New Studio in the Philippines - IGN". IGN. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  7. ↑ "President Marcos bans video game machines". Logansport Pharos-Tribune. 19 November 1981. p. 17. Retrieved February 26, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Presidential Decree No. 519 - Supra Source". Retrieved 26 February 2015.
  9. ↑ Dillon, Roberto (12 April 2011). The Golden Age of Video Games: The Birth of a Multibillion Dollar Industry. Page xvii: CRC Press. ISBN 1439873232.
  10. ↑ "Marcos Bans Video Games". The New York Times. 19 November 1981. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  11. ↑ "Philippine President Bans Videogames". History Channel. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  12. ↑ Dillon, Roberto (2011). "Timeline". The Golden Age of Video Games: The Birth of a Multibillion Dollar Industry (illustrated ed.). Boca Raton, FL: A K Peters/CRC Press. p. xvii. ISBN 1439873232. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  13. ↑ "DOTA banned in internet shops in Cavite village". GMA News. 21 January 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  14. ↑ Vitale, Jennifer Kim (January 2010). "Video Game Piracy in the Philippines: A Narrowly Tailored Analysis of the Video Game Industry & Subculture". Pace International Law Review 22 (1 Winter 2010). Retrieved 15 November 2015.
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