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Advertising and mass media in the digital age

“You have to have a dream, whether big or small. Then plan, focus, work hard and be very determined to achieve your goals” — Henry Sy, Sr.
It’s no secret that a great number of Filipinos want to establish a business to augment their income from regular employment. For some, it is the key to a financially stable retirement. Yet, many would-be capitalists do not dive into the pool unless they have established the necessities — a solid business concept coupled with seamless funding.
Formulating a business concept is often difficult, but most of the successful ones built their companies based on the things they love, or through activities they are passionate about. Once the details of the concept have been finalized, the next step is to look for funding, which is not that easy to come by, especially if you are a budding entrepreneur with no substantial personal or real property that you can use as collateral for a loan. Without funding, the concept will definitely die a natural death.
So, if a group of foreigners offers to finance your concept under an agreement to share with them 50% of the profits and losses, you may agree without thinking twice (or without even thinking), not really bothered by the legal implications of such an arrangement. For the uninformed proprietor, it may be worthwhile to revisit the latest developments on the matter, especially in the digital age where business transactions now take place freely and quickly across borders.
In a request for clarification, a software development company sought guidance from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on whether the “marketplace” feature of its online platform could be construed as engaging in the business of advertising and/or mass media, and thus, subject to nationality restrictions under existing laws. The platform connects individual debtors to partner-creditors, with the intention of the former obtaining loans from the latter.
As represented, the platform consists of a page where the partners’ logos are displayed and featured, as well as the services they provide.
The SEC unfortunately did not categorically rule on the matter, as online platform content can be variable and mutable; instead, it deemed prudent to provide guidance on the issue. In an opinion issued on Nov. 28, the SEC differentiated between advertising and mass media services. Advertising agencies serve as agents or counsellors of advertisers by writing, preparing, or producing the commercial messages or materials in selling goods or services, and selecting or recommending the medium to be used for dissemination to the public. They do not actually disseminate the materials they prepare. However, if the advertising agency by itself disseminates such materials to the public using any medium of communication, they automatically become mass media.
On the other hand, an entity is deemed engaged in mass media if it disseminates information to the general public, and such information is designed to affect or influence the people’s way of thinking or lifestyle. Currently, mass media includes print, broadcast, and electronic/digital media, which includes the Internet.
Thus, an online or mobile app platform operator (which renders service to third-party clients) is not deemed to be engaged in advertising services if it does not write or prepare commercial messages or materials for the products of their third-party clients to be posted in their platform or mobile app; and does not select for or advise their third-party clients what medium or vehicle to use to disseminate the advertising materials and commercial messages.
On the other hand, the same operator is not engaged in mass media activities under the following conditions:

1. There is no pervasive or indiscriminate display to the general public of any promotional materials or advertisements on the products or services being offered by third-party clients or even the platform or mobile app itself.

2. Only the following information may be made available in the app, website, or platform:

a. Enumeration of the services offered by the platform itself.

b. Instruction on how to use the said platform.

c. Enumeration of third party partners, and this shall only be limited to the listing of name or logo of the third-party client.

d. Any other information on the platform required to be disclosed by any law or regulatory measures.

3. The disclosure of products and services offered by third-party clients is only for the purpose of completing the transaction enabled by the app, website, or platform.

In the event an entity is engaged, either in advertising or mass media (or any line of business which is nationalized or partly nationalized), it needs to comply with another legal obstacle: The Anti-Dummy Law (ADL). Under the ADL, foreigners are not allowed to be appointed to management positions in the business. Violators would subject to criminal liability.
On this note, can a corporation engaged in the business of quarrying, mining, cutting strip, finishing, setting, purchasing on wholesale basis and dealing in non-metallic ore, among others, be legally allowed to appoint a director (who is a foreign national) as its President? The SEC, in an Opinion issued late last year, said no. Since the corporation is engaged in mining, a partly nationalized activity that limits foreign equity ownership up to 40% only, it cannot have a foreign national as President. Note however that the law allows foreign directors to be appointed in proportion to the equity interest of the foreign beneficial owners.
Despite the above restrictions and limitations, the dreamer in every Juan Dela Cruz should not be discouraged to venture into business. Instead, every Filipino should focus more on the concept, without forgetting the dream (i.e., Dummy Relationships, Advertising and Mass Media). Likewise, they ought to be challenged by the drive to excel and contribute to our economy, not only as a means of livelihood, but as a sense of moral responsibility. For all we know, the next successful entrepreneur is just around the corner.
The views or opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Isla Lipana & Co. The content is for general information purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for specific advice.
 
Reynaldo Q. Marquez, Jr. is a manager with the Tax Services Group of Isla Lipana & Co., the Philippine member firm of the PwC network.
(02) 845-27 28
reynaldo.q.marquez.jr@ph.pwc.com

Changing the way we buy and sell

The matter of cleaning up Manila Bay and our surroundings boils down to effective waste management. And this, to me, is not just a question of proper disposal. We should address the problem at the source, and this means targeting to minimize if not eliminate waste altogether. And this is where policies like the Food Waste Reduction Act come into place.
Last Monday the House of Representatives approved House Bill No. 8873 or the “Food Waste Reduction Act,” which provides for the creation and regulation of food banks that are to receive edible surplus food donated to charity. The food will be checked by health inspectors before they are turned over to accredited food banks serving the poor.
The bill requires food manufacturers, food establishments, supermarkets with at least 500 meters of selling space, and culinary schools with at least 50 students to set aside edible food surplus, first for health inspection, and then donation to food banks. The food banks will distribute the food to recipients to be identified by local and national government agencies.
I laud the bill and how it aims to deal with food surpluses. In September last year, I wrote about how France in 2016 became the first country in the world to ban supermarkets from wasting food. A law prohibited them from throwing away food that were nearing their best-before dates. Such food must instead be donated to charities and food banks, where they could be used to produce meals for the poor.
Supermarkets that violated the ban could be fined, and their owners or corporate officers jailed. Supermarkets with a footprint of at least 400 square meters — against 500 meters here — are made to sign donation contracts with charities, or face a penalty. Food industries were also encouraged to give excess products directly to food banks from factories.
And then there was a “food waste” supermarket that opened in the United Kingdom also in 2016 that began working with other supermarkets to put such food to good use. “The Real Junk Food Project” opened its first warehouse in Leeds to serve as a “food waste supermarket” where the poor could take food which would otherwise have been thrown away.
But the food is not for free. People are expected to pay what they can afford, or donate their time in volunteering for the project instead; food past expiration date are rechecked if they are still fit for human consumption; and food also get sent to partner cafés and restaurants, which cook them and sell the cooked food also to those in need.
Our Food Waste Reduction law as well as the French and British initiatives of having surplus food donated to charity all work towards reducing waste, or “recycling” food that would have been thrown away. But there are many other ways to address the problem, particularly cutting down on plastic waste that end up in our oceans.
pollution
More recently, the New World supermarkets group in New Zealand’s capital of Christchurch started to do away with plastic packaging and plastic wrapping and started selling fruits and vegetables in its supermarkets in the “nude.” And, according to one report, its sales of some vegetables have even soared by up to 300% since the initiative started.
One explanation was that in the past, with the old-style fruit and vegetable stands, people could smell the fruits and vegetables. Buying decisions were influenced by these scents. But in wrapping products in plastic, they were “sanitized” and people were deprived of the experience of being influenced by scents. Removing the plastic wrapping has thus become a driver of sales.
Admittedly, the concept is not new to us. In the Philippines, particularly in small-town markets, fruits and vegetables are usually sold “naked.” Sadly, however, customers bring them home in plastic “sando” bags. In this line, we should bring back the practice of using baskets or market bags or “bayong” not only in urban centers but also in smaller towns.
I believe anything short of a total ban will not work. There shouldn’t be exceptions. We must think of alternatives, rather than exclusions. In the case of New Zealand’s New World chain, the move to eliminate plastic wrapping is in response to a bigger government initiative to totally phase out plastic bags at all retaining points by July 1.
New World started selling produce without plastic packaging after consulting growers and suppliers. It has also put in new refrigeration shelving that produces a mist that helps keep items fresh. This was after noting that “misted produce not only looks better, retains its color and texture, but also has higher vitamin content.” It also installed a “reverse osmosis system” that treats the misting water by removing 99% of all bacteria and chlorine.
Some products are now sold in cardboard trays, or other forms of recyclable packaging. Customers are also asked to bring their own containers for meat and seafood. The grocery chain is also looking into paper alternatives to foil seafood bags, as well as fiber-based deli trays. Under the NZ Plastic Packaging Declaration that the chain had signed, all store and private label packaging must be 100% reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2025.
Just the other day I was outside at a donut shop. Three young men went in and then went out with a bag of donuts and cups of coffee. After stepping out, they each got a donut out of the bag and started eating. As soon as the bag was empty, it was dropped to the floor, stepped on, and left there. Not sure what happened to their disposable coffee cups after as I had already left. Appalling behavior, really. But it could have been avoided if nothing was taken out of the store.
Customers cannot use — and throw away after — what they cannot buy. If there are no plastic packaging for products, then there will be no plastic packaging going to garbage bins, dump sites, and our oceans. We should eat in rather than take out. And when buying in groceries, we should choose products with minimal packaging. Or go to stores that allow you to use your own reusable container.
I will gladly campaign for Howard Schultz as president of the United States if he can actually stop his entire Starbucks chain worldwide from selling coffee in disposable cups with plastic covers; if he can encourage people to sit down in his stores to drink their coffee rather than take them out; and, to encourage customers to bring their own mugs and reusable containers for takeout coffee. This is a great way to prove that he is beyond ready to lead the free world.
 
Marvin Tort is a former managing editor of BusinessWorld, and a former chairman of the Philippines Press Council.
matort@yahoo.com

‘Walang forever’

“Walang forever ” (There is no forever) is a Tagalog slang commonly used by those who got dumped, those who don’t believe in love, and those who hate seeing couples showing affection to each other. But, did you know that there are some Human Resource Management aspects we could learn from this phrase?
All CEOs will inevitably leave the office one day. Harell’s 2016 study showed that most organizations are ill-prepared to replace executives. Each year, around 10% to 15% of corporations appoint a new CEO. This is because of executives’ retirement, resignation, dismissal, or illness. Top management plays a vital role in the success of the businesses as they are directly responsible for taking the company to the next level. To avoid major disruptions, companies should have succession plans.
Succession planning, according to Rothwell (2010) of Association of Talent Development, is a strategic change effort designed to prepare people for promotion within an organization by emphasizing internal talent development. More and more companies are asking the question: Do we have qualified people ready to fill key positions in the short/long term?
Here are five tips for a successful succession planning:

(1) Starting Early

Are you one of those no girlfriend/boyfriend since birth? Stop saying I’m too busy to look for someone. Don’t wait for your employee to approach mandatory retirement before looking for a replacement. There is nothing wrong in starting early, ideally 5-10 years ahead of the retirement point. Knowing your options, develop a strategy and be prepared for the worst. Remember failing to plan is planning to fail.

(2) Finding Mr. or Ms. Right

Love is very much like parking spots, all the good ones are taken, the rest of them elusive. Succession Planning works in mysterious ways, it’s not always a case of appointing an individual successor and planning a smooth transition. Well unless, if you are of the Zobel’s, Sy’s, Gokongwei type of family business wherein they’re bred to be future leaders. The next Mr. or Ms. Right could be your immediate direct reports, the person you meet in a meeting, the last person you talked to. Keep an open mind and an open eye, be observant in your workplace.

(3) Avoid Assuming

Don’t Assume and don’t give false hope. Don’t assume succession is a simple matter of a second-in-command stepping up to a leadership position when a leader retires. It involves a complex learning process to know the ins and outs of the business that takes months or even years. We are never too old to learn. Invest in their learning, development, leadership skills, guide them, coach them to make every key decision.

(4) Managing expectations

Have you heard of Expectation versus Reality? Be realistic. Succession plans aren’t promises. If you aspire to be the heir-apparent, you have to show the right skillset and talent to impress the higher ups. For leaders, only give the promise of succession if there is a realistic chance of its happening!

(5) Learning to “Let it Go”

We’ all been through a stage of denial. It’s easier said than done. This is the hardest or biggest challenge when it comes to succession planning. Letting people go, especially if they are pioneers or pillars of the company, is tough. Emotions can cloud your decision-making abilities, making it harder to focus on the impending future.
In conclusion, poor succession planning often leads to the extension of ineffective executives who stay in office long after they should have been substituted. Lack of preparedness is only part of the problem. An equally difficult challenge is finding the right replacement.
Succession planning and strengthening of the leadership pipeline should be the top concerns for corporations. Not everybody is born a leader. But the simple truth is every company needs a good leader. There is no forever, no matter how good or productive our senior leaders are. They will eventually leave office, willingly or not (at 65 under current Philippine law). And when the right time comes, who knows? You can be the next one.
But, whatever the outcome maybe, as Confucius said: “Choose a job that you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”
As Valentine’s Day approaches, it’s the season to love and be loved. But to all my single friends who have had bitter love experiences, it is true, in both love and career: #WalangForever.
 
Kevin Jayson O. Cheng is a Master in Business Administration student at De La Salle University. He wrote this article as part of the course requirements of Strategic Human Resource Management.
kevin_jayson_cheng@dlsu.edu.ph

Top 10 threats to global health in 2019

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently came out with a list of the top 10 threats to global health that will demand attention from WHO and its health partners in 2019.
These threats, that are also affecting us in the country, include the following:
Vaccine hesitancy, or the reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite the availability of vaccines, threatens to reverse progress made in tackling vaccine-preventable diseases. Vaccination is one of the most cost-effective ways of avoiding disease — it currently prevents two to three million deaths a year, and a further 1.5 million could be avoided if global coverage of vaccinations improved. Vaccine hesitancy is an urgent issue in the Philippines following a drop in vaccine confidence and coverage.
Dengue remains a global health threat. Dengue cases in the country also increased by 21% in January to October 2018 compared to the same period in 2017. The WHO explains that dengue is a mosquito-borne disease that causes flu-like symptoms. Dengue may be lethal, killing up to 20% of those who contract its severe form.
Meanwhile, the world will face another global influenza pandemic — the only thing we don’t know is when it will hit and how severe it will be. WHO warns that global defenses against this threat are only as effective as the weakest link in any country’s health emergency preparedness and response system.
Every year, WHO recommends which strains should be included in the flu vaccine to protect people from seasonal flu. If a strain develops into one which could cause pandemic, the WHO will activate mechanisms that it has put in place in partnership with major players.
The HIV epidemic continues to rage with nearly a million people every year dying of HIV/AIDS. The 6,532 new HIV infections reported by the DoH from January to July 2018 is the highest recorded so far. The average number of Filipinos newly diagnosed with HIV per day has steadily increased: 2 in 2009, 7 in 2011, 13 in 2013, 22 in 2015. and 31 in 2018.
Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease, are collectively responsible for over 70% of all deaths worldwide. These three NCDs are among the leading causes of death in the Philippines. The rise of NCDs has been driven by five major risk factors: tobacco use, physical inactivity, the harmful use of alcohol, unhealthy diets and air pollution.
Air pollution and climate change: Nine out of ten people breathe polluted air every day. In 2019, air pollution is considered by WHO as the greatest environmental risk to health. Microscopic pollutants in the air can penetrate respiratory and circulatory systems, damaging the lungs, heart and brain, killing 7 million people prematurely every year from diseases such as cancer, stroke, heart and lung disease. The primary cause of air pollution (burning fossil fuels) is also a major contributor to climate change, which impacts people’s health in different ways. Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause 250,000 additional deaths per year, from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea and heat stress. As an archipelago, the Philippines is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.
Fragile and vulnerable settings: More than 1.6 billion people (22% of the global population) live in places where protracted crises (through a combination of challenges such as drought, famine, conflict, and population displacement) and weak health services leave them without access to basic care. Fragile settings exist in almost all regions of the world, and these are where half of the key targets in the sustainable development goals, including on child and maternal health, remain unmet.
Antimicrobial resistance is the ability of bacteria, parasites, viruses and fungi to resist these medicines. Drug resistance is driven by the overuse of antimicrobials in people, but also in animals, especially those used for food production, as well as in the environment.
Ebola and other high-threat pathogens: In 2018, the Democratic Republic of the Congo saw two separate Ebola outbreaks, both of which spread to cities of more than 1 million people. WHO has come up with a watchlist for priority research and development. This includes Ebola, several other hemorrhagic fevers, Zika, Nipah, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and disease X, which represents the need to prepare for an unknown pathogen that could cause a serious epidemic.
Weak primary health care: Primary health care can meet the majority of a person’s health needs of the course of their life. Health systems with strong primary health care are needed to achieve universal health coverage. Yet many countries do not have adequate primary health care facilities. This neglect may be a lack of resources in low- or middle-income countries, but possibly also a focus in the past few decades on single disease programs, the WHO concludes.
 
References:
1. https://www.who.int/emergencies/ten-threats-to-global-health-in-2019
2. https://news.mb.com.ph/2018/10/24/dengue-cases-up/
3. https://www.doh.gov.ph/node/1058
 
Teodoro B. Padilla is the executive director of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP). Medicine Cabinet is a column that aims to promote awareness on public health and health care-related issues. PHAP and its member companies represent the research-based pharmaceutical and health care sector in the Philippines.
medicinecabinet@phap.org.ph.

Innocence of crime

All men start as good-natured spirits. No one is born evil. Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty. All children are innocents although they may commit wrongdoing. These are evident.
The debate on what age children can be considered to commit crimes, and hence are to be regarded as criminals, is flooded with a hodgepodge of false views, incoherent arguments, and downright fallacies. Without a simple exposition, it is a disservice to everyone, especially the children in question and the subjects of their wrongdoing or victims of their crime as the case may be.
First, a bedrock principle in criminal law states that a crime is committed by a person with intent. Intent means with purpose, that is, the individual knows what he is doing and what the consequences of his actions are. Thus, an insane person without control of his mental faculty cannot be guilty of a crime as he does not and cannot have intent.
A child of tender age is in a similar situation. The child puts his fingers into electric sockets, spills oils and sauces all over and rides his bike on the wrong side of the road and sometimes in the middle of it. A child can also play with his parent’s gun and set it off and kill someone. But no one will seriously condemn the child to death or to a life of imprisonment.
From the first principle, the first question to answer is this — at what point do we draw the line of minimum age of criminal responsibility? At what age can a child or a minor, defined as anyone less than 18 years of age, can he be considered to be capable of determining right or wrong, the intent of his action and its consequence?
It is conceded that at nine years old or below, the child is utterly innocent. It is also conceded that at 15 and above, the minor is already in a position to choose between good and bad. Internationally, the chronological age is set between 12 to 14. If the country picks any number within this range, it is consistent with studies, research, and experience. It is then a matter of legislative policy and societal consensus.
The second point which must be quickly put away is the argument that we should set the minimum bar at the highest possible point because our jails are not places for children and that our jails are congested. This is a fallacy. It is incorrect to say that a child has committed a crime and must go to jail. From the restorative justice perspective, there are a hundred ways of approaches to mentor a child and control his behavior. These include homestays, counselling, loss of access to games or devices, to tree-planting, sports program or basic forms of community service.
It is harmful and self-defeating for child-rights advocates to keep on calling for imprisonment as the only or main answer to the problem of children’s wrongdoings.
What is essential, and this is the third point, is the specific act or omission of the minor who has breached a social rule or a binding law. For example, if a 10-year-old girl spits on a classmate, it is wrong but it is not a crime. If a 17-year-old girl spits on a rival in a basketball game, it is slander by deed — a crime.
By way of nomenclature, it is not proper to label it as “age-appropriate” offense for there is no age or time that it is appropriate to commit an offense. Rather, it is technically termed as “age-specific” offense.
To continue, if a 15-year-old boy taunts his obese classmate, he is responsible for the bullying with the appropriate school and parental sanctions. If he also flying-kicks this classmate causing injuries, he is not innocent. A kick is not done without intent to hurt or harm. The additional institutional response may be to remove him from his social group to prevent further or future destruction to others and to himself.
Society through the State may impose preventive, remedial, punitive, or corrective means in the fulfillment of its duties as protector of those whose rights are affected, avoiding the need of the victims to resort to revenge to redress, and in the pursuit of the harmony and balance of the community.
And this is where the fourth point comes to bear. If the minimum age is set at too high a mark, this absolutely removes this set of offenders from the ambit of the law. The exemption from criminal liability is full, complete and absolute. The child can do no wrong; the minor can do no crime. This is contrary to human experience.
It is also against sound policy as the State is rendered helpless even to require alternative modes of rehabilitation or punishment that is necessary for the offender and essential for the victim and both their families. It is made ineffectual to mandate discipline erring members of the community.
In sum, all children are innocents but can commit wrongs. Wrongs that are not age-specific can be crimes that require action and response from the State. Incarceration is not the first or only option. Setting the appropriate age when criminal intent can exist is a responsibility that requires clear thinking.

Skirting the rules

By Tony Samson
ELECTIONS seem to bring out the creativity of candidates and their campaign supporters. Even before the list of official candidates was finalized, there were already tarps of likely aspirants popping up all over the place — just a big photo and a short message. The posters are out there to greet passers-by (also known as “eyeballs”), extend congratulations to successful graduates, greet one and all happy holidays, or simply stake out slogans (daughter of the revolution). There is, of course, no mention of the position they are seeking. It’s presumed to be obvious. (Psst — I’m running for mayor) The effort is merely to raise awareness of the brand.
There was a Comelec ban on electioneering prior to the February 12, 2019, formal start of the campaign). Already there was guerrilla advertising even then: Huge billboards with identifiable faces of candidates (okay, some are only vaguely familiar and looking like debutantes waiting for the next dance, never again) with names and slogans along busy thoroughfares. (Please take down your billboards, or else we’ll get quite upset.)
As for public appearances, there are ribbon-cuttings at mall openings, attendance in fiestas, wedding sponsorships, and visits to bomb sites — from a photo bomber. (Isn’t there a new butler?) The photo ops are featured in both traditional and social media. No, sir, that is not considered electioneering.
After the lifting of the electioneering ban this month, skirting the rules on allowed election spending will only accelerate. Costings are reported only on advertising placements. So, why are traditional media outlets getting antsy on the seeming lack of enthusiasm for ad placements and media plans for the coming eight weeks? Election spending is to media what Christmas shopping is to retailers. It is the surge of campaign advertising and publicity in an election year that ratchets up media revenue.
Has spending on campaigns all shifted to social media with its lower costs and millennial appeal? This is not a new trend, after all. The troll army with its blizzard attacks on hate objects (those who hate their love object) has been buzzing for three years now. It will only level up its game at this time.
There are other practices that skirt the spending cap rule that also explain the lower-than-expected election advertising, which historically anyway is lower for mid-term elections than for presidential ones.
“Paid media” involves ad spending in traditional media, including billboards. Note that in this category, the payment is over-the-table and enters the company’s audited books. The industry practice for political ads requires paying before broadcast (PBB). The payment is often delivered in sports bags and weighs much heavier than a check. The advanced payment method avoids the risk of collection problems, especially from the winners.
“Earned media” on the other hand is free. It refers to coverage of a candidate due to his newsworthiness, whether from a signal achievement (rare), a scandal involving pork rind (more common) or the assassination of a rival (not available for interview). Free publicity may take the form of an ambush interview or a scheduled one-on-one chat on a news program, or a lifestyle segment — sir, what is your favorite form of exercise, aside from stretching the truth?
To guarantee a friendly, okay flattering, coverage, the encounter is scripted to highlight the achievements and sterling attributes of the guest. The “earned” part of this media coverage is extended to the show’s producer or the host — ma’am, you look so young with your pigtails. (The host looks at his notes.) How did you bring down the price of rice in your province, when Metro Manila was going crazy with a shortage and skyrocketing prices? One will observe that a host with a long question which seems to already contain the required answer has probably been incentivized via PBB and required to nod his head every three seconds, assuming the demeanor of ecstasy in the presence of his guest. He will not interrupt even a ten-minute answer with charts and bar graphs. And no fact-checking please.
Debates too are part of free media. However, the format can waste a lot of the candidate’s time for the preparation, with very questionable returns on brand building. With so many candidates, can’t he just skip this ritual?
Skirting rules in the campaign trail is good practice for the job ahead. The ability to dodge legal speed bumps on the road to happiness is part of the job description for public service.
 
Tony Samson is chairman and CEO, TOUCH xda.
ar.samson@yahoo.com

Alaska adds to Columbian’s woes

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Alaska Aces notched their first win in the PBA Philippine Cup on Wednesday, beating the now-skidding Columbian Dyip, 94-72, at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Showing better footing than their debut in the season-opening Philippine Basketball Association tournament, the Aces (1-1) had a more steady attack en route to dealing the Dyip (2-4) a third straight defeat.
The Aces got it going early in the contest, albeit faced some resistance from the Dyip.
They eventually found the leverage they were angling for as the opening quarter progressed, racing to a 20-13 lead at the end of the first 12 minutes.
The two teams ground it out to start the second period, going back-and-forth to fight to a 27-16 count in the opening three minutes of the frame.
But like the first quarter, the Aces went on a higher gear, led by Chris Banchero, Jeron Teng and Carl Bryan Cruz.
Alaska held off the continued fight back by Columbian after to stay ahead, 46-36, at the half.
Rookie CJ Perez and Jackson Corpuz tried to fashion out an early run for Columbian to start the third quarter only to find little success as Alaska collectively stood their ground.
Executing a balanced attack, the Aces built on their cushion, stretching their lead to 21 points, 68-47, in the dying seconds of the third.
A late triple by Mr. Jackson trimmed Columbian’s deficit to 18 points, 68-50, heading into the fourth quarter.
Sensing that they got the Dyip on the ropes, the Aces went for the early closeout at the start of the payoff quarter.
They opened things with a 7-3 run to stretch their lead to 22 points, 75-53, with just a minute lapsing.
Alaska’s lead was at 30 points, 89-59, by the four-minute mark and from there it cruised to the victory.
Mr. Cruz led the Aces with 20 points to go along with nine boards.
Jake Pascual had 13 points while Ping Exciminiano and Chris Banchero had 12 and 10 points, respectively, for Alaska, which continued to play sans Vic Manuel, Simon Enciso, JVee Casio and Kevin Racal because of injuries.
Columbian, meanwhile, was paced by Mr. Perez’s 15 and Mr. Corpuz’s 12 points.
“I’m proud of our defense which won it for us. We had two days to prepare after the beating we got from Rain or Shine [last time around]. And I really appreciate the effort that my guys put up,” said Alaska coach Alex Compton after their win.
Alaska next plays on Feb. 13 against the Blackwater Elite while Columbian returns on Feb. 27 against the Meralco Bolts.

Ceres-Negros FC now turns focus on AFC Cup

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
WITH its AFC Champions League (ACL) bid abruptly coming to an end on Tuesday night in Bacolod City, top local club football team Ceres-Negros FC shifts its focus to the AFC Cup where it hopes to do better.
Losing, 2-1, to Yangon United FC of Myanmar in their first preliminary stage knockout match of the 2019 AFC Champions League at the Panaad Park and Football Stadium, the “Busmen” saw their tournament aspirations dashed at the onset while being relegated to Asia’s second-tier tournament AFC Cup, which will start next month.
Ceres needed to beat Yangon United to advance to the next round of the ACL next week but just could not keep in step with the visiting side which took the fight to the hometown bets.
Showing much aggressiveness right from the kickoff despite playing on enemy territory, Yangon United had Ceres working.
The efforts of the visiting side eventually paid off in the 29th minute when Brazilian Vinicius de Oliveira gave it the 1-0 lead.
But the Busmen regrouped as the opening half drew to a close with Stephan Schrock converting a pass from Martin Steuble in the 44th minute to make it 1-1 by the halftime break.
Yangon United continued with its go-getting mindset to begin the second half.
And it did not take long before it seized the lead anew as substitute Kaung Htet Soe scored in the 59th minute.
Ceres desperately tried to claw its way back for the remainder of the contest but just could not get the break it needed as it slumped to the defeat.
After the match, the Busmen said they could have played far better than they did but nonetheless gave credit to their opponents for making things happen in booking a spot in the second stage of the preliminaries of the ACL.
Armed with the lessons of their recent loss, Ceres hopes to use them when they compete in three weeks’ time in the AFC Cup.
“Hopefully we get to perform better in the next tournament. Tonight we just did not play good enough but we will work on the things we did wrong and be ready in three weeks,” said Mr. Shrock following their match against Yangon United.
He was seconded by Ceres coach Risto Vidakovic, who said they would use the next few days to evaluate and assess what happened to them against Yangon United and make the needed adjustments.
“We have to prepare for the AFC Cup and make the necessary adjustments to perform better,” said Mr. Vidakovic.
In the AFC Cup, which kicks off on March 11, Ceres is lumped together with Vietnam’s Becamex Binh Durong, Indonesia’s Persija Jakarta and Myanmar’s Shan United in Group G.
The Busmen begin their campaign against Becamex Binh Durong away at the Binh Durong Stadium on March 12.
Also seeing action in the AFC Cup is Kaya FC-Iloilo, the Copa Paulino Alcantara champion, which is playing in Group H along with Home United FC of Singapore, Lao Toyota FC of Laos and PSM Makassar of India.

Fans pack Boston streets for Patriots’ Super Bowl parade

BOSTON — Hundreds of thousands of football fans packed into Boston’s streets on Tuesday to catch a glimpse of the New England Patriots after their record-tying sixth Super Bowl win.
A parade of World War Two-era amphibious duck boats blasted confetti into the sky, while players including quarterback Tom Brady, linebacker Dont’a Hightower and famously taciturn head coach Bill Belichick, celebrated the team’s 13-3 victory over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.
Unseasonably warm weather — with a forecast high of 63 Fahrenheit (17.2 Celsius) — helped swell crowd sizes at the city’s 12th professional sports championship parade since 2001.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh had forecast that the crowd could pass one million. Police offered no estimate of the crowd’s size.
Fans packed the route from Boston’s Prudential Tower and down Boylston Street to City Hall, with players including wide receiver Julian Edelman tossing footballs to the crowd.
Patrick Cronin, an 18-year-old high school student, said he was thrilled to cheer a team he said was often doubted during its regular season.
“So consistently everyone was like, ‘They’re too old,’ or they have some stupid reason why Brady is no good,” Cronin said. “It’s so satisfying when they’re so good again.” — Reuters

Lakers still waiting before ending Davis trade talks

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers informed the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday they are pulling of trade talks for star Anthony Davis, the Los Angeles Times reported. But Lakers’ president of basketball operations Magic Johnson still wants the Pelicans to start making counteroffers and will listen to them, according to league sources at ESPN.
Johnson told New Orleans general manager Dell Demps that the Lakers had made their best offer, the Times reported, citing a source not authorized the speak about the issue.
According to Times’ sources, the Lakers had modified their offer to the Pelicans and were willing to trade Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Ivica Zubac to the Pelicans. In addition, they had agreed to part with two first-round draft picks and to take Solomon Hill and his $12.7 million contract along with Davis.
“They wanted more and more and more,” a source told the Times. “There was no more to give. They had cap-relief with Hill being in the deal. But the more they wanted, the more it became outrageous and unrealistic.”
Johnson and Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka insist they’ll add nothing more to a deal without Demps showing an increased engagement with the Lakers, league sources told ESPN.
Both the Times and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported the Pelicans were asking for eight draft picks. Wojnarowski identified those as four first-round and four second-round picks.
But Wojnarowski cautioned Johnson will listen if New Orleans makes a counteroffer.
“If Pelicans want to counter the Lakers most recent offer on Davis, Magic Johnson and (general manager) Rob Pelinka are obviously anxious to find a pathway for a trade,” Wojnarowski tweeted. “This is a negotiation tactic on behalf of Lakers, who have wanted New Orleans to show more initiative in the process.”
Davis’ agent last week said Davis would not be re-signing with New Orleans and requested a trade. Davis is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent in July 2020, so the Pelicans do not need to rush into a trade.
In the meantime, Davis has recovered from a finger injury, but the Pelicans’ front office reportedly ordered the All-Star big man to sit out as rumors swirled ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline.
Yahoo Sports reported Tuesday that Davis, 25, could sit until Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline passes.
New Orleans is scheduled to play Wednesday night in Chicago. Davis sustained a left finger avulsion on Jan. 18, but said Friday in his first public comments since demanding a trade that it was “time to move on.”
Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry told the media on Monday that Davis had been given the OK to practice but that activating him wasn’t his call to make.
Davis said he wants to get back on the court.
“My intentions are to play,” he said. “I’ve been working to get my finger back healthy. Obviously, it’s a tough situation, but my intention is to still play and when I’m able to play, I plan on suiting up.”
In 41 games this season, Davis is averaging 29.3 points, 13.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists.
In addition to the Lakers, ESPN reported Davis would also entertain signing a contract extension with the Los Angeles Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks, and New York Knicks.
LAKERS ACQUIRE BULLOCK FROM PISTONS
Amid rumors surrounding the Lakers’ pursuit of star big man Anthony Davis, Los Angeles reportedly is adding a guard.
The Detroit Pistons are sending veteran guard Reggie Bullock to the Lakers in exchange for rookie guard Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and a draft pick, multiple media outlets reported Tuesday night.
According to The Undefeated’s Marc Spears, the Pistons will get a second-round selection in the deal.
Bullock, 27, would be heading back to Los Angeles. He played his first 1 1/2 pro seasons with the Clippers, who made him a first-round draft pick (No. 25 overall) out of North Carolina in 2013.
Bullock spent a partial season with the Phoenix Suns after he was part of the three-team deal that sent Austin Rivers to the Clippers. In July 2015, Phoenix dealt him to Detroit, along with Danny Granger and Marcus Morris, in exchange for a 2020 second-round draft pick.
In 44 games this season, Bullock is averaging 12.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists. He had 19 points and seven rebounds Tuesday in the Pistons’ 105-92 road win over the New York Knicks.
Mykhailiuk, 21, is averaging 3.3 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 39 games for the Lakers. Los Angeles selected the Ukraine native in the second round last year (No. 47 overall) out of Kansas. — Reuters

12th Prima Badminton Championships set Feb. 22

TWO THOUSAND entries all over the nation including the country’s top players are expected to join the 12th Prima Pasta Badminton Championships set Feb. 22, 23, 24, 25 and March 2 and 3 at the Powersmash badminton courts in Chino Roces Avenue, Makati City.
The annual competition powered by the Forthright Events & Sports Management Inc. and supported by Smart remains sanctioned by the Philippine Badminton Association (PBA) and affiliated with the Philippine National Ranking System (PNRS) throughout the years.
“We are hoping for another year of badminton extravaganza where the different players will able to showcase their skills and talents. This year, we are also expecting the defending champions to be challenged in their respective events,” says Prima Pasta organizing chairman Alex Lim.
Rabie Jayson Oba-ob and Sarah Joy Barredo are the men’s and women’s singles open defending champions, respectively.
The tournament, sponsored by Babolat and SMART Communications through MVP Sports Foundation, will include the following events: Men’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles from Open class, to Levels A to G, while Open Class and Levels B to F will be available in the Women’s Doubles.
The open singles will be available only in the men’s and women’s category. There will also boys’ and girls’ singles events for Under 19, 17, 15, 13 and 11 categories, while boys’ and girls’ doubles will be available for Under 19, 17 and Under 15. All these events run from Feb. 22 until 25.
The event is also supported by Boysen Paints, Morning Star Milling Corp., Mabz Builders, ILO Construction, Monocrete Construction, Pioneer Insurance, Promax International, Regent Foods Corp., RFM Corp. and Del Monte Phils.
A non-gender doubles event — the combine age 100 — will also be featured in the tournament. Minimum age will be 30 years for either player.
Trophies, medals and gift certificates await the winners and runner-ups for all the events.
For more information, you can view the website http://www.primapastaopen.com or contact Yoly Araullo (0998-5110454) and Nica Albiso (0939-5211699).

The Soltis Principle

Gibraltar Masters 2019
Caleta Hotel, Gibraltar
Jan. 22-31, 2019

Final Top Standings

1. GM Vladislav Artemiev RUS 2709, 8.5/10

2. GM Murali Karthikeyan IND 2570, 8.0/10

3-5. GM Nikita Vitiugov RUS 2720, GM David Howell ENG 2685, GM David Anton Guijarro ESP 2642, 7.5/10

6-22. David Navara CZE 2738, GM Nils Grandelius SWE 2682, GM Lalith Babu MR IND 2547, GM Le Quang Liem VIE 2714, GM Ivan Saric CRO 2690, GM Wesley So USA 2765, GM Yu Yangyi CHN 2764, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave FRA 2780, GM Michael Adams ENG 2701, GM Kirill Alekseenko RUS 2637, GM Hikaru Nakamura USA 2749, GM Romain Edouard FRA 2643, GM Rauf Mamedov AZE 2703, GM Pavel Eljanov UKR 2680, GM Hrant Melkumyan ARM 2660, GM Maxim Matlakov RUS 2700, GM Tan Ahongyi CHN 2502, 7.0/10

Ave. Rating 2753 Category 21
Time Control: 100 minutes for the first 40 moves, then 50 minutes for the next 20 moves, followed by 15 minutes for the rest of the game with 30 seconds added to your time after every move starting move 1
This is a continuation of our coverage of the 2019 Gibraltar Masters tournament, won by two 20 year-olds, Vladislav Artemiev at 1st and Karthikeyan Murali at 2nd.
Wesley So was the tournament third seed but finished in 11th place with five wins, four draws and a loss to the Swedish GM Nils Grandelius. This was in keeping with the overall mediocre performance of the big names in Gibraltar. Wesley was actually the highest placed among the top 5 seeds: No. 1 Maxime Vachier-Lagrave finished in 13th place, no. 2 Levon Aronian was in 24th place, no. 4 Yu Yangyi was just behind Wesley at 12th place and 5th seed Hikaru Nakamura was 16th.
Wesley’s opponent in the last round is GM Bogdan-Daniel Deac of Romania. Deac is a chess prodigy, born 8 October 2001, he earned his grandmaster title at the age of 14 years, seven months and 27 days, which is just a few months shy of Wesley’s record of 14 years, one month and 20 days.
How do you play against chess prodigies? Let me quote GM Andy Soltis from “Confessions of a Grandmaster:” “As each year passes, new kids will readily appear on the scene equipped with the obviously unfair advantage of (a) having more energy than you, and (b) having seen all your bad games of the past. As a (rapidly) aging master, I can offer some advice. You can avoid a lot of trouble by taking great pains to humiliate the new generation whenever possible over the board. And as often as you can. Arthur Bisguier made the mistake of allowing a draw with Bobby Fischer in their second game. Bobby had forfeited on time in a hopeless position in their first and seemed suitably cowed after that. But after their second game ended in a draw, the psychology was no longer working against Fischer, and he won the next 11 games they played.”

So, Wesley (2765) — Deac, Bogdan-Daniel (2603) [E53]
Gibraltar Masters 2019 Caleta (10), 31.01.2019

1.c4 Nf6 2.d4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 0 — 0 5.Bd3 d5 6.a3 Bxc3+ 7.bxc3 dxc4 8.Bxc4 c5 9.Nf3 Qc7 10.Be2 b6 11.0 — 0 Bb7 12.Bb2 Rd8
The alternative 12…Nbd7 has a good score for Black. The idea is to prepare to swing the two knights to the kingside. Here is an example: 13.c4 Rac8 14.Rc1 Rfd8 15.Qb3 Ng4 16.g3 (16.h3? Bxf3!) 16…Ngf6 17.Rfd1 Ne4 18.Ne1 Carlsen, M (2837)-Anand, V (2782) Riadh 2017 0 — 1 34. This was played during the World Rapid Championship of that year. Writing after the game Anand remarked here that he missed the strong continuation: 18…Ndf6! with the follow-up …h7 — h5. White cannot shoo the knight away with 19.f3? because of 19…Nxg3! 20.hxg3 Qxg3+ 21.Kf1 Nh5! and wins.
13.c4 cxd4 14.exd4 Nc6 15.Bd3 Ne7 16.Re1 Ng6 17.Ne5 Nf4 18.Bf1 Ng6 19.Bd3 Nf4 20.Bf1 Ng6
A tacit draw offer, but Wesley does not accept based on the “Soltis principle.”
21.Nxg6 hxg6 22.a4 Bc6 23.Ra3!
Swinging his rook over to the kingside.
23…Qf4 24.Qe2 Rac8 25.h3 Qd6
Black should have seriously considered taking out the bishop on f1 with 25…Ne4 followed by …Nd2.
26.a5 Rb8 27.Re3
With the threat of 28.d5 exd5 29.Be5, winning the exchange, which explains Black’s next move.
27…Qd7 28.Re5
The intention is to push his h-pawn to h5.
28…Rdc8 29.h4 Re8 30.axb6 axb6 31.h5 Nxh5 <D>
POSITION AFTER 31…NXH5
32.Rxh5! gxh5 33.Qxh5
Wesley’s follow-up is Re1 — e3 — h3.
33…f5 34.Re3 Qf7 35.Qh2
[35.Qh4 Qf6 allows Black to reposition her queen to a better square at no cost of time]
35…Qf6 36.Bc3
With the idea of d4 — d5.
36…f4?
It is hard to see, but Black’s best line is 36…Be4! the point here is that 37.d5 (37.f3 Bc2 does not accomplish anything) 37…e5 38.Qh5 (38.f3 is refuted by 38…b5! 39.fxe4 Qb6! the tables have turned) 38…Qf7 39.Qe2 b5! Both sides have chances.
37.Re5!
The move Black should not have allowed.
37…Qg6 38.Rh5 Qe4 39.Rh8+ Kf7 40.Rh4 Kg8
[40…g5 41.Rh7+ Kg8 42.Rh6! and Qh5 is fatal for Black]
41.Rh8+ Kf7 42.Rh4 Kg8 43.Rxf4 Qc2 44.Qg3 Rb7 45.Rg4 Ree7 46.Bd3 Qc1+ 47.Kh2 Be8 48.d5! exd5 49.Qh3 Re4 50.Bxe4 dxe4 51.Rh4 1 — 0
After 51.Rh4 White is threatening Qe6+ with forced mate. If Black tries to prevent that with 51…Bd7 then (51…Re7 52.Rh8+ Kf7 53.Qf5#) 52.Rh8+ Kf7 53.Qh5+ Ke7 54.Qe5+ Be6 55.Qxg7+.
GM Karthikeyan Murali covered himself with glory by coming in 2nd. He started off slowly with 2 draws followed by 2 wins, a loss to GM Hikaru Nakamura and then finished with 5 straight wins, the last three of which against 2700+ GMs. By the way, he is a Tamil — they have no concept of “surnames” or “family names.” Murali is his father’s name and so we should refer to him by his given name, which is Karthikeyan. The most famous Tamil chessplayer in the world is Viswanathan Anand — similarly, his given name is Anand and Viswanathan is his father’s name.
This might be confusing to some. There are 16 other Tamil GMs, including famous names are Baskaran Adhiban (use Adhiban), Krishnan Sasikiran (given name is Sasikiran), Ramachandran Ramesh (the famous GM and coach — his first name is Ramesh) and many others. The only one whose name is not confusing is Sethuraman Sethuraman — you can take your pick which name you are going to use!
Karthikeyan’s chess is deadly accurate. He goes into the most critical lines and does not make mistakes. The “Frenchman with two names” learned this the hard way when he took his opponent for granted.

Karthikeyan, Murali (2570) — Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime (2780) [B90]
Gibraltar Masters 2019 Caleta Gibraltar (10.2), 31.01.2019

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 Ng4 7.Bg5 h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.Bg3 Bg7 10.Be2 h5 11.h4 Nc6 12.Nf3 gxh4 13.Bxh4 Qa5 14.Qd2 Be6 15.Rd1 Rc8 16.0 — 0 Rg8 17.Nd5 Qxd2 18.Rxd2 Bh6
[18…Bxb2? 19.Rb1 Black’s position is very dangerous. If the bishop retreats with 19…Bg7 then 20.Rxb7 Bf8 21.Nc7+ Kd8 22.Nxe6+ fxe6 23.Rxd6+ Ke8 24.Rdd7 White is clearly winning]
19.Rdd1 f6 20.c3 Bg5?
Karthikeyan thinks this was the key mistake of the game. He was hoping for the exchange of bishops but White does not oblige.
21.Bg3! Bh6
The bishop was looking silly at g5 and so MVL brings it back to h6. In the meantime the square h4 is now avaiable for White’s knight.
22.Nh4! Kf7 23.Nf5
Threatening Bxg4 followed by Nxh6.
23…Bxf5 24.exf5 Rg5 25.Bc4 Na5 26.Bd3 Rcg8 27.Bf4 R5g7 28.Rfe1 Nc6 29.Be4 h4
Black is trying to complicate the position but he keeps making it worse for himself.
30.f3 Bxf4
Forced, because of 30…Nge5 31.Bxh6
31.Nxf4
The g4 — knight is still attacked but now comes a new threat, Bd5+
31…Nge5 32.Bd5+
Wins the exchange and it is enough for Karthikeyan to push for the win.
32…Ke8 33.Bxg8 Nxf3+
[33…Rxg8 34.Kf2 Kf7 35.Nd5 the Black h4 — pawn will fall]
34.Kf2 Nxe1 35.Bd5 Rg5
There is nowhere for the knight to go. 35…Nc2 36.Rc1.
36.Kxe1 Rxf5 37.Ng6 Rh5 38.Rd3 Rh6 39.Nf4 e5 40.Ne6 Ne7 41.Bxb7 Kd7 42.Nf8+ Kc7 43.Bxa6 d5 44.c4 f5 45.Bb5 f4 46.Ra3 1 — 0
There were 26 Indians in Gibraltar. You know that the Indian chess boom will continue when you hear that there will be 33 Indians (29 players and three officials) who will be travelling to the super-powerful Aeroflot Open in Moscow on Feb. 18, 2019 sponsored by the Government of India to cover plane fare, accommodations and even a per diem allowance.
Now what can the Philippines say to that?
 
Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.
bobby@cpamd.net

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