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Jr. NBA Philippines back for an 11th straight year

JR. NBA Philippines, the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) global youth basketball participation program, ushers in a new decade of conduct in the country as it returns for an 11th straight year in 2018.

To kick off on Jan. 13 at the Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati, the Jr. NBA Philippines program will run till May with the aim of reaching more than 250,000 participants and 900 coaches across the country.

Started in the Philippines in 2007, the Jr. NBA program teaches the fundamental skills and core values of the game at the grassroots level in an effort to enhance the youth basketball experience for players, parents and coaches.

This year the program, still presented by Alaska Milk, remains free and open to boys and girls ages 10-14 throughout its four stages: skills clinics in schools and communities, Regional Selection Camps, a National Training Camp and an NBA experience trip.

Since its launch in 2007, Jr. NBA clinics have been implemented in 110 cities and municipalities across the country and the 2018 program will return to key provinces including Agusan del Norte, Batangas, Benguet, Cavite, Misamis Oriental, and Negros Occidental.

Regional Selection Camps will be held in Bacolod (Feb. 10-11), Butuan (Feb. 24-25), Baguio (March 17-18) and Metro Manila (April 7-8), with the top 37 boys and 37 girls advancing for the National Training Camp in Manila in May, which will feature an NBA and WNBA player or legend.

The program will culminate with the selection of 16 Jr. NBA All-Stars, comprised of eight boys and eight girls, who will embark on an overseas NBA experience trip with fellow Jr. NBA All-Stars from Southeast Asia.

Prior editions of the Jr. NBA Philippines program have featured notable alumni including Aljon Mariano, Kobe Paras, Kiefer and Thirdy Ravena, Ricci Rivero, and Kai Sotto.

The 2018 edition of Jr. NBA Philippines will also include the Jr. NBA Coach of the Year program, led by Jr. NBA Head Coaches Carlos Barroca and Alaska Power Camp Coach Jeff Cariaso, to provide training for 14 Jr. NBA coaches during the National Training Camp, with two Jr. NBA Coaches of the Year awarded with an NBA experience trip.

“For the past 10 years, Jr. NBA Philippines has established itself as a platform to improve the youth basketball experience and promote an active and healthy lifestyle among the Filipino youth,” said NBA Philippines Managing Director Carlo Singson as they announced the return of the program in 2018. “Together with Alaska, we are committed to providing proper guidelines to how the game should be played and taught to more youth, coaches and parents in the country,” he added.

“As part of our long-standing partnership with the NBA, Alaska Milk Corporation is proud to play an active role in shaping the basketball players of tomorrow through good nutrition and proper life values,” said Alaska Milk Corp. Marketing Director Blen Fernando.

“We look forward to making a lasting impact on the lives of aspiring athletes on and off the court through the Jr. NBA program,” he added.

For more information on how to register and other particulars, log on to www.jrnba.asia/philippines or check out the Jr. NBA Facebook page at www.facebook.com/jrnbaphilippines. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Reasons to watch: plot twists and great actors

By Nickky F. P. de Guzman
Reporter

Movie review
Deadma Walking
Directed by Julius Alfonso

WITH THE huge success of last year’s Die Beautiful, it is easy to dismiss Deadma Walking, an entry for this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), as a copycat gay film — but it is definitely not. Both are equally funny and flamboyant, and revolve around the death of a gay man, but the similarities end here.

Deadma Walking wants us to empathize with the gay businessman John Samson (Joross Gamboa) whose days are numbered after he’s diagnosed with stage four cancer. He connives with his theater actor beshie (best friend) Mark (Edgar Allan Guzman) to fake his death so he can attend his own wake and see who among his friends and former lovers will come and what good (or bad) memories they may have to share.

John disguises himself as the transgender Yolly Redgrave to be able to attend his wake every day. Their show almost fails when John’s balikbayan sister (Dimples Romana) tries to open his casket to see him one last time. A bit of quick wit (the stunt caused the whole movie house to burst into laughter) saves the charade.

Deadma Walking is studded with stars in cameos as 20 (or was it more?) celebrities play John’s friends or old flames, including Piolo Pascual, Gerald Anderson, Marco Alcaraz, Vin Abrenica, Iza Calzado, Joel Lamangan, Vandolph Quizon, Sue Ramirez, Angelou de Leon, Nikki Valdez, and more.

Directed by Julius Alfonso and written by Eric Cabahug, Deadma Walking has high doses of comedy and drama, a bit of a love story, and few art movie montages (featuring comedian Eugene Domingo).

The funny movie is a serious contender for major MMFF awards, including Best Actor — a tie between its two usually underrated stars. Gamboa and Guzman’s skill and chemistry on screen balance each other’s characters. They are like yin and yang, complementing and never overshadowing each other.

Mr. Gamboa’s portrayal of a prim and proper gay guy is subtle and sophisticated, and the total opposite of Mr. Guzman’s depiction of a flamboyant, witty, funny gay man. The delicate balance of this juxtaposition proves how smartly the movie is conceptualized.

Deadma Walking started as a screenplay submitted by Eric Cabahug to the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature — it took second place in its category in 2016. There is also a book version, released by Viva, which is among the top 10 best-sellers at a popular book store.

Deadma Walking is from the same producers behind the successful comedy film Patay na si Hesus, which was an entry at the QCinema Festival this year.

While one may think Deadma Walking is simply about John’s attempt to outwit the Grim Reaper (at least when it comes to knowing his legacy), it demands the viewer invest more in its storytelling, punchlines, and not one, but two, major plot twists, or gay lingo would call major, major pasabog.

MTRCB Rating: PG

Jose Rizal, hero outside the battlefield

About a month ago, we observed National Heroes Day, a day reserved for Filipinos who have consistently demonstrated in a very public way exemplary courage and dedication to save the lives of entire nations, communities, and complete strangers at the risk of their own lives and comfort. To this category belong our World War II veterans, Filipino soldiers who served elsewhere in the world in defense of international mandates and commitments, victims of state-sponsored and -instigated violence and murders in fighting for justice, and everyone else whose heroic deeds have been properly authenticated and validated. No fake medals, no fake heroes.

In a few days, we recall the execution on Dec. 30, 1896, by a foreign invader, of Jose Rizal, then 35 years old. Rizal is one hero whom we should remember especially on Nov. 30 because he is not only an instrument of commerce (his profile is on the one-peso coin), but also an example of a Filipino (even if technically he was not a Filipino citizen because we declared our independence from Spain on June 12, 1898 in Kawit, Cavite), who opted to serve society in various ways.

Rizal was a reminder to the Spaniards that their subjects were willing to wage war not just in deadly combat in the battlefield but also in the battle for people’s hearts and minds both in the islands and elsewhere in the world, especially in Europe and the Americas, through his writings and travels abroad. The Andres Bonifacios, the General Lunas and Del Pilars, and a host of other fighters were all but too willing to shed their blood for Philippine independence and freedom in the battlefield. The Spaniards were only too aware that the independence fervor had risen to dangerous heights.

Rizal’s talent was not in planning and executing strategy in the battlefield in the hills and mountains of the archipelago. His charism was in pricking the consciences of both the Spaniards and their subjects (some of whom had become steadfastly loyal to and collaborated with “mother” Spain) through his writings and novels.

What made Rizal’s writings more powerful and threatening to the Spaniards was that he was totally credible because of his intellect, his education (compared with the majority of the ignorant subjects and so-called “great unwashed”), well-rounded personality, and his various professional credentials. Rizal was a novelist, an ophthalmologist, a painter, and even a sportsman, a fencer, and a charming person.

In short, he was no ordinary subject; he was a different specimen. And if he were allowed to continue traveling all over the world and writing his nasty novels about Spanish oppression and injustice, he and the warriors in the fields would make a lethal combination.

It makes sense to conclude that Rizal knew that his talent was not in the battlefield but elsewhere. We have been told that Rizal believed it was not yet ripe to fight for complete independence, but to get to that ideal point in peaceful phases, starting with representation in mainland Spain’s governance structure. To that extent, as is usually the case in any revolution, there were fundamental differences of opinion, strategy, and timing among leaders of the upheaval. This happened to be one of them: the fighters and the proletariat had one approach while the intellectuals and propagandists had another.

Regardless of these differences, Rizal still opted to join the struggle from within the islands and not from some far foreign land where he could be safe. He could have just chosen to remain comfortably quiet and pursue his various interests and relationships and earn good money by leveraging his many talents. Yet he decided to take the risk, bear some of the burden, confront the issues right in the islands, and suffer the consequences of having to do much more because he had been given much more.

As schoolchildren, we learned about the great sacrifices of heroes like Bonifacio, Rizal, and even our modern-day hero, Ninoy Aquino. These lessons were most likely chronological narratives about these heroes’ lives, their mid-lives, and their deaths. We were probably made to memorize dates and names of persons who had much to do with these heroes, but perhaps we did not benefit from a synthesis of the heroes’ lives and their real roles in society at the time of their lives and deaths. We probably did not benefit from the deeper insights of teachers (who may have been trained to emphasize the facts of the heroes’ lives) and definitely, we were too young then to produce our own syntheses and insights.

It is somewhat tragic that we did not have too many insights on Rizal, a selfless well-rounded, talented, thinking person who was a threat to Spanish rule simply because he was not supposed to be a well-rounded, talented, and thinking subject.

 

Philip Ella Juico teaches in the Doctor of Business Administration program of the Ramon V. Del Rosario College of Business of De La Salle University. He was Secretary of Agrarian Reform during the administration of President Corazon C. Aquino.

philip.juico@yahoo.com.ph

Apple gets sued after saying it slows down aging iPhones

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple, Inc. defrauded iPhone users by slowing devices without warning to compensate for poor battery performance, according to eight lawsuits filed in various federal courts in the week since the company opened up about the year-old software change.

The tweak may have led iPhone owners to misguided attempts to resolve issues over the last year, the lawsuits contend.

All the lawsuits — filed in US District Courts in California, New York and Illinois — seek class-action to represent potentially millions of iPhone owners nationwide.

A similar case was lodged in an Israeli court on Monday, the newspaper Haaretz reported.

Apple did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment on the filings.

The company acknowledged last week for the first time in detail that operating system updates released since “last year” for the iPhone 6, iPhone 6s, iPhone SE and iPhone 7 included a feature “to smooth out” power supply from batteries that are cold, old or low on charge.

Phones without the adjustment would shut down abruptly because of a precaution designed to prevent components from getting fried, Apple said.

The disclosure followed a Dec. 18 analysis by Primate Labs, which develops an iPhone performance measuring app, that identified blips in processing speed and concluded that a software change had to be behind them.

One of the lawsuits, filed Thursday in San Francisco, said that “the batteries’ inability to handle the demand created by processor speeds” without the software patch was a defect.

“Rather than curing the battery defect by providing a free battery replacement for all affected iPhones, Apple sought to mask the battery defect,” according to the complaint.

The plaintiff in that case is represented by attorney Jeffrey Fazio, who represented plaintiffs in a $53-million settlement with Apple in 2013 over its handling of iPhone warranty claims.

The problem now seen is that users over the last year could have blamed an aging computer processor for app crashes and sluggish performance — and chose to buy a new phone — when the true cause may have been a weak battery that could have been replaced for a fraction of the cost, some of the lawsuits state.

“If it turns out that consumers would have replaced their battery instead of buying new iPhones had they known the true nature of Apple’s upgrades, you might start to have a better case for some sort of misrepresentation or fraud,” said Rory Van Loo, a Boston University professor specializing in consumer technology law.

But Chris Hoofnagle, faculty director for the Berkeley Center for Law & Technology, said in an e-mail that Apple may not have done wrong.

“We still haven’t come to consumer protection norms” around aging products, Hoofnagle said. Pointing to a device with a security flaw as an example, he said: “the ethical approach could include degrading or even disabling functionality.”

The lawsuits seek unspecified damages in addition to, in some cases, reimbursement. A couple of the complaints seek court orders barring Apple from throttling iPhone computer speeds or requiring notification in future instances. — Reuters

End of 47-year Japan rice program signals ramen wheat boost

THE END of Japan’s four decades of rice market control could be good news for noodle lovers.

That’s because rice farmers may plant alternative crops like wheat once government control ends by March 31 and look to tap into rising demand for ramen. Fukuoka, on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu, is expanding production of a locally developed variety of grain known as Ra-Mugi that’s designed to be perfect for tonkotsu ramen: a dish of cloudy white pork broth, with noodles and slices of pork that originates in the region.

Ramen demand has climbed in recent years with restaurants opening from London to Sydney, challenging the ubiquity of Japan’s other well-known food export sushi. The number of shops outside the country more than doubled to over 2,000 in the two years to early 2015, Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum says, with the expansion supported by the government-backed Cool Japan Fund. Asia’s second-biggest wheat importer relies on grain from the US, Canada and Australia to produce ramen noodles domestically.

“What is ideal for our ramen noodle is a chewy, sticky one that can preserve its texture in a soup,” said Yuji Yamaguchi, counselor at Tofuku Flour Mills Co., which developed the wheat jointly with the Fukuoka prefectural laboratory. “Ra-Mugi is designed to meet our requests.”

Tonkotsu ramen was invented in 1937 by noodle-shop operator Tokio Miyamoto and was initially eaten by fish market workers in Fukuoka as fastfood. Two decades later, Momofuku Ando invented the instant ramen noodles beloved by college students. The global retail value of instant noodles rose 11% since 2012 to $33 billion this year, Euromonitor International estimates.

In Japan, tourists are also driving demand and ramen now ranks alongside sushi and Wagyu steak as one of their top menu choices, according to Motoo Kawabata, a professor for global marketing at Kwansei Gakuin University in Nishinomiya. The number of foreign tourists visiting Fukuoka city rose 24% in 2016 to 2.57 million, a fifth straight record. Korean tourists accounted for about 40%, according to the city government.

“After seeing photographs and videos of our outlets via social media, they come here to have a real one,” said Yukari Shibayama, a spokeswoman at Ichiran’s flagship shop in Fukuoka city. “We have seen a surge in foreign customers to our shop, mainly from Taiwan, Korea and Hong Kong, in the past three years.”

“Tonkotsu ramen is the best Japanese food for me, along with sushi,” said Jeon Byeong Hyun, a 34-year-old office worker visiting Fukuoka from Busan, South Korea. “I came here to introduce my favorite shop to my friends.”

Farmers may also be encouraged to grow Ra-Mugi wheat as it offers higher returns.

Yukio Endo, 49, who grows rice, wheat and barley in Fukuoka, must spray crops with fertilizer for a fourth time with a heavy machine on his back about a month before harvesting Ra-Mugi on his 8-hectare (20 acres) paddy. That compares with three times for other wheat, but is necessary to maintain a high level of protein. Millers request at least 12%.

“It requires us to work harder, but rewards us better,” he said in an interview. Farmers producing Ra-Mugi can get premium of 2,300 yen ($20) per 60 kilogram bag compared with conventional wheat. Growers are also eligible for a 35,000-yen subsidy for every 0.1 hectare of wheat planted as the government seeks to curb its reliance on imports.

Producers are unable to keep up with local demand. Fukuoka, Japan’s second-biggest wheat grower, wants to raise Ra-Mugi production by more than 30% to 8,000 tons in the near future, which would be enough to supply about half the ramen shops in the prefecture, said Tadayuki Matsumoto, director at the local government’s agricultural department.

Hakata-Sanki, the biggest user of Ra-Mugi wheat, uses the variety even though it’s 20% more expensive than flour made from imported grain because it helps attracts customers, according to Akira Nakano, the manager of the company’s noodle-making plant in Dazaifu. Sales of Ra-Mugi noodles are set to increase to 300,000 units a month by March from about 230,000 in November and will double by 2019 as it moves to supply more than just its own 14 stores, Nakano said. — Bloomberg

DBP opens new branch in Palawan

STATE-OWNED Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) in a statement said it opened on Dec. 7 a new branch located in Taytay, Palawan, as part of its continuing branch expansion program. DBP President and CEO Cecilia C. Borromeo said the opening of the DBP Taytay-Palawan branch mirrors the bank’s commitment to support the economic growth prospects of the province and bring more unbanked Filipinos into the financial mainstream. “There is tremendous growth happening not only in Puerto Princesa, but also in El Nido, Coron, Roxas, San Vicente and, of course, Taytay and the other municipalities of northern Palawan,” she noted to guests during the inauguration. Ms. Borromeo added that DBP is rolling out numerous initiatives for its clients and other valued stakeholders. She also cited DBP’s continued support for the micro, small and medium enterprise sector, adding “DBP will also be financing the various development initiatives of electric distribution utilities, water districts and local government units.” DBP currently has 125 branches offering a full range of banking and project financing products and services, and also has extension offices in Naguilian, La Union; Cabugao, Ilocos Sur; and Bayugan, Agusan del Sur.

Reuters journalists in Myanmar appear in court

YANGON — Two Reuters journalists who have been detained in Myanmar for the past two weeks were remanded in custody for a further two weeks on Wednesday as a probe continues into allegations they breached the nation’s Official Secrets Act.

Judge Ohn Myint granted the 14-day extension in the case of the journalists, Wa Lone, 31, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 27, at the request of the police, who then took them to Yangon’s Insein prison. They were previously being held in a police compound.

When they appeared at the Mingaladon court for the proceedings, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were allowed to meet their families and their lawyer for the first time since their arrest.

The two journalists had worked on Reuters coverage of a crisis in the western state of Rakhine, where — according to United Nations’ (UN) estimates — about 655,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from a fierce military crackdown on militants.

They were detained on Dec. 12 after they had been invited to meet police officials over dinner. The Ministry of Information has said they “illegally acquired information with the intention to share it with foreign media” and faced charges under the British colonial-era Official Secrets Act, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 14 years.

The two journalists said they had not been mistreated in custody.

“The situation is okay,” Wa Lone said after the hearing.

“We will face it the best we can because we have never done anything wrong,” he said. “We have never violated the media law nor ethics. We will continue to do our best.”

A Reuters spokesperson said they should be freed.

“These two journalists are being held for simply doing their jobs and have done nothing wrong. It is time for Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo to be released,” the spokesperson said.

Government officials from some of the world’s major nations, including the United States, Britain and Canada, as well as top UN officials, have previously called for their release.

FAMILIES TRAVEL TO PRISON
Dozens of reporters and cameramen were outside the courthouse in a northern district of Yangon for the appearance of the two journalists. They were brought in a white van, rather than a police truck, dressed in casual clothes and were not handcuffed.

Their lawyer, Than Zaw Aung, who has been retained by Reuters, also said the two had only been doing their job as journalists.

“They are being accused under this charge while doing their work as media,” he told reporters.

Lieutenant Colonel Myint Htwe, a senior staff officer from the Yangon Police Division, said: “We took action because they committed the crime. It needs to be solved in court.”

Only their lawyer and the families of the two journalists, along with police and government lawyers, were allowed into the courtroom. The families were later allowed to travel in the van as the two journalists were taken to prison.

“I believe that he didn’t commit any crime,” Pan Ei Mon, Wa Lone’s wife, told Reuters. “I would like to request the government to consider releasing them.”

Nyo Nyo Aye, a sister of Kyaw Soe Oo, said her brother told her he had not committed any offense. “I believe that he can come home soon,” she said. — Reuters

Do not expect an English Only, Please

By Zsarlene B. Chua
Reporter

Movie review
All of You
Directed by Dan Villegas

IF YOU ARE planning to watch Dan Villegas’ All of You and expecting that it would be like his English Only, Please which starred the same couple — Jennylyn Mercado and Derek Ramsay — you would be absolutely disappointed.

All of You is not the sort of romantic-comedy that English Only, Please — where Ms. Mercado played a perky English tutor and Mr. Ramsay a cosmopolitan Fil-Am who wants to pen a scathing letter to his cheating ex — was. All of You is about Gabby (Ms. Mercado), a food concepts franchise specialist who wants to get married, and Gab (Mr. Ramsay), a wealthy bar owner who doesn’t want to get married.

If you’re looking to be charmed as much as you were with English, you would also be disappointed as this film is way more dramatic and confusing.

Warning: Many spoilers ahead!

Though billed as romantic-comedy, the film is a hardcore romantic drama as the ill-suited couple who meet through an online dating app try to make the relationship work by living together, even if what they wanted out of the relationship differs.

Five minutes into the movie, Gabby is dumped by her fiancee of six years (Rafael Rosell) after a shouting match as they search for a parked car. An hour and 10 minutes into the movie, Gabby breaks up with Gab after once again engaging in a shouting match on the side of the road.

Both times, the men talk about how imposing Gabby is and Gabby tells both men how they always think she’s the one who’s wrong.

I tried hard to like the movie as it delved into the disillusionment of long-term relationships and discussed the problems that arise after the honeymoon is over, but the sloppy writing made it difficult to sit through a movie which is composed of more than an hour of couples fighting. Tension is high from beginning to end, with a 40-minute respite showing the couple engaging and/or implying sexual activities representing the high points of the whirlwind relationship.

And one of the sex scenes is so cringe-worthy with all the closeups and slo-mos.

What makes the film hard to like is how the reasons for the protagonists’ issues are never tackled: it never fully explains why Gab doesn’t want to marry though it is implied that he wants to be like Peter Pan and stay forever young (his bar is named Neverland and he has an ex called Wendy, played by Solenn Heusaff) and while it hinted that the reason Gabby wanted to marry was because her mother never married her father, this was never explored.

The ending feels unfinished, unsatisfying, and rushed. They break up, and while one may have hoped Gabby would find her backbone and realize they would never make it and finally let go, her resolution to break up for good lasts for half-a-minute — then the credits roll.

So there, All of You is not a feel-good film and you probably will leave the cinema with more questions than answers like, “What the hell, Mr. Villegas?” He won’t probably win Best Original Story this year like he did for the 2015 MMFF entry #WalangForever (which also starred Ms. Mercado), and Ms. Mercado probably won’t win the Best Actress trophy as she did for both #WalangForever and English Only, Please.

MTRCB Rating: R-13

Net neutrality in the Philippines — is it necessary?

In the US, the freedom to tap the resource that we know as the Internet has been limited by its Federal Communications Commission (FCC), when it decided to repeal its “net neutrality” regulations. In a nutshell, net neutrality is “the principle that Internet service providers should enable access to all content and applications regardless of the source, and without favoring or blocking particular products or Web sites.”

The Internet has become a facet of daily life in the Philippines. From toddlers learning their ABCs on iPads, to students reading their e-books for school, to lawyers researching materials for their next court filing, the almost unlimited resources at our disposal is often taken for granted.

In the Philippines, there is presently no law, rule, or regulation that limits or promotes net neutrality. It is readily observable, however, that Internet access in the Philippines is generally neutral, save for a few pornographic sites that are banned for legal purposes.

There are also some instances where mobile Internet service providers are not neutral in the strict sense. An example would be enabling mobile data to freely access Facebook, but the same mobile data cannot freely access other Internet resources. Other examples would be when mobile service providers charge an additional fee for “data packets” for specific applications, such as Spotify, Instagram, and Netflix, or inversely, when providers consider these packets as “free” inclusions within a specific phone plan.

Is there, then, a need for our own net neutrality regulations?

Considering the extensive use of the Internet in our country, it is easy to suggest that there is a great need for net neutrality rules to be enacted. It may be a question of whether there is a necessity for written rules or whether we should just rely on and replicate how other countries run their Internet policies. Opting for the former option may be most desirable for our country, considering the avowed state policies declared in recent legislative enactments.

In RA No. 10929 or the Free Internet Access in Public Places Act, it was declared as state policy “to promote an environment for the development of structures that would ensure the availability and accessibility to reliable and secure Internet access suitable to the needs and aspirations of the nation.” Thus, free access to Internet service in public places was enacted, to “promote knowledge-building among citizens and enable them to participate and compete in the evolving information and communication age.”

Even RA No. 10844, the law that created the Department of Information and Communications Technology, recognizes as a state policy the need “to foster an ICT sector policy environment that will promote a broad market-led development of the ICT and ICT-enabled services (ICT-ES) sectors, a level playing field, partnership between the public and private sectors, strategic alliance with foreign investors and balanced investments between high-growth and economically-depressed areas” and “to ensure consumer protection and welfare, data privacy and security, foster competition and the growth of the ICT sector.”

With these policies already in place, it can be seen that the state has recognized the necessity and importance of free and accessible information, without discriminating as to source or content, save for limited exceptions.

Data is data, whether these be used to access music, documents, social media, or bitcoins. The lack of net neutrality rules may be used as basis for future actions of service providers to intensify its efforts to “packet” data for specific uses for a fee. This may result in, as observed by experts, the general public having different informational experiences — some having access to more quality information, while some having access to only bad information, which may include fake news, spam, and false advertising.

Net neutrality may hit the “Free Facebook” part of the population, but it will also greatly benefit the public in general, as access to the entirety of the vast domain of the Internet will not be subjected to the whims or profit motives of private service providers.

 

Antonio Bonifacio C. Reynes is an associate at the Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department of the Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz Law Offices (ACCRALAW).

Analysts cut forecasts for iPhone X shipment, cite lukewarm demand

APPLE, INC. looks like it’s having a not-so Merry Christmas.

Analysts lowered iPhone X shipment projections for the first quarter of next year, citing signs of lackluster demand at the end of the holiday shopping season.

Sinolink Securities Co. analyst Zhang Bin said in a Dec. 26 report that handset shipments in the period may be as low as 35 million, or 10 million less than he previously estimated. “After the first wave of demand has been fulfilled, the market now worries that the high price of the iPhone X may weaken demand in the first quarter,” Zhang wrote.

JL Warren Capital LLC said shipments will drop to 25 million units in the first quarter of 2018 from 30 million units in the fourth quarter, citing reduced orders at some Apple suppliers. The drop reflects “weak demand because of the iPhone X’s high price point and a lack of interesting innovations,” the New York-based research firm said in note to clients Friday.

“Bad news here is that highly publicized and promoted X did not boost the global demand for iPhone X,” according to the note.

Still, the iPhone X is only one part of Apple’s smartphone strategy heading into the new year. The company also recently released the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus at lower prices than the iPhone X, which could mean that a portion of consumers are opting for the other models, according to Cowen & Co. The firm said that Apple didn’t add enough new technology into the iPhone X to justify a $999 price tag.

Apple has projected revenue of $84 billion to $87 billion in the holiday quarter, which would represent growth of as much as 11% from the period a year earlier. Analysts estimate sales of $86.2 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Given that the iPhone represents about two-thirds of Apple’s sales, the company’s forecast indicates that it’s expecting iPhone growth. Analysts also project almost 30% year-over-year revenue growth for Apple’s fiscal second quarter, which suggests that iPhone sales won’t slow down for months into 2018.

Apple has been counting on a redesigned 10th anniversary iPhone to boost shipments as its market value advances toward $1 trillion. It is facing new challenges from Samsung, which is quickly recovering from the Galaxy Note 7’s recall after fires. In the meantime, Chinese brands such as Huawei, Oppo and Xiaomi are also luring away potential customers in China and other emerging markets such as India. — Bloomberg

PCC approves joint venture for Wawa water project

THE Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) has given the go-signal for Prime Metro Power Holdings Corp. (PMPHC) and San Lorenzo Ruiz Builders & Developers Group, Inc. (SLRBDGI) to create a company to handle the Wawa Water Project.

The country’s competition watchdog said it has approved the proposed joint venture agreement between the two firms that will form the Wawa JVCo., citing that it will not result to “substantial lessening of competition in the relevant market,” in its decision penned Dec. 19.

The PCC is tasked to review all mergers and acquisitions valued over P1 billion, to ensure the transaction does not hamper competition within the market.

In approving the transaction, the commission said there are “sufficient post-transaction competitive constraints remain from participants in raw water supply.” It added there would be no incentives for the joint venture company to “engage in anti-competitive coordinated behavior.”

With this, PMPHC and SLRBDGI will construct and establish facilities to capture water from Wawa River, located in Rodriguez, Rizal, and divert water for municipal use.

The project will provide either raw or treated water to both water distributors, Manila Water Company and Maynilad Water Services, Inc., and consumers in Metro Manila and neighboring communities.

San Lorenzo Builders will contribute its water permit, application for volume increase, and the Wawa Water project to the JV company, in exchange for 18% ownership in the latter.

The permit allows it to capture 3,480 liters per second of water from the Wawa River for municipal or commercial use. The company is also applying with the National Water Resources Board for an increase of water volume under the permit to at least 18.13 cubic meters per second (CMS) and up to 40 CMS, against the current 3.48 CMS.

On the other hand, PMPHC will have a controlling stake in the partnership with 82%. It has committed to invest in the joint venture  company and raise funds for the project, once it finishes due diligence.

“PMPHC undertakes to raise project funding for the Wawa Water Project once it is convinced of the legal, commercial, and financial viability of the Wawa Water Project after it conducts due diligence within a period of a year,” the PCC quoted. — Arra B. Francia

3 agencies to investigate NCCC fire

THREE agencies will investigate the NCCC Mall fire incident: a task force, an insurance investigator from the NCCC Mall, and a third-party private investigator. Mayor Sara Z. Duterte in a press conference yesterday said the city government of Davao is offering to shoulder the professional fees of the third-party investigator if the families of the fire victims so request. The Task Force will include the Bureau of Fire Protection, Department of Interior and Local Government, National Bureau of Investigation, and the city government of Davao. “It will be an interagency investigation and other offices of the government will be part of the task Force. The task Force will come up with a report and that will be the report about the fire,” Ms. Duterte said. Ms. Duterte also gave an update on the casualties, saying that of the 37 bodies recovered, one remained unidentified as of this writing. The family of Mikko Demafeliz, a call center agent of SSI, has already submitted a specimen for DNA testing, while members of the city government’s City Social Services and Development Office have visited the family of another SSI employee, Alexandra Moreno. “What I can say right now is we are continuously looking for the one missing SSI employee named Alexandra Moreno so if anyone has information about her whereabouts we would appreciate if they would immediately report to the city government of Davao or the Davao City Police Office,” Ms. Duterte said. The NCCC Mall management also confirmed yesterday the death of one of its employees, Melvin Gaa, a safety officer who had brought SSI employees to safety. Mall spokesperson Thea Padua said Mr. Gaa was a member of the NCCC Emergency Action Team (NEAT) who had helped rescue the 83 surviving SSI employees and an estimated 700 mall personnel and visitors. “Melvin had already brought down several SSI employees and was already seen having safely exited the building at the ground floor. But instead of remaining downstairs, he went upstairs again to try to save more people,” Ms. Padua said. — Maya M. Padillo

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