Chamber pitches solutions to traffic

November 29, 2019 | 12:32 am

THE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION of the Philippines (MAP) has recommended readily available solutions to worsening traffic to the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

MAP in a statement on Thursday said that the association “begs the authorities to do something about the horrendous daily traffic in the metropolis.”

“The MAP is directly affected because the employees of its members [are] crying for a solution.”

The group said that the recommendations are its response to MMDA’s call for suggestions from the public.

MAP recommends improved enforcement of regulations and fines to compel private and public motorists to comply.

The association also posed several recommendations to improve the use of public utility vehicles (PUV). It urged authorities to maximize the use of PUVs to move commuters faster “in the absence of an efficient mass transport system.”

It wants authorities to designate stops for PUVs to quickly load and unload passengers and to declog bus lanes. It said PUVs should be allocated more lanes and be spared of number coding restriction during rush hours.

MAP also said that provincial buses should be given leeway to transport more commuters in less time.

Between rush hours, MAP said private vehicles should be allowed use of all lanes.

“Limit the number of PUVs on the road through a suggested, modified coding system in order to provide more space (and less congestion) to private vehicles during non-rush hours,” MAP said in the statement.

It also urged authorities to form a mobile task force to unclog choke points on critical routes.

“[People manning the] Central traffic control center must put to good use their CCTV system to closely monitor these problem areas and alert flying task force or assigned traffic personnel to quickly untangle them before traffic backup,” MAP said.

MAP estimated the cost of traffic congestion at about P3.4 billion for 13.4 million trips in 2019, translating to P250 per person per day — or 40% of the P600 daily minimum wage in Metro Manila.

In response to these recommendations, MMDA traffic operations chief Edison “Bong” Nebrija said that MMDA has been trying to isolate PUVs to move traffic quicker, but motorists have not been following the rules.

“Sana ni-recommend nila magkadisiplina mga bus drivers (They should’ve recommended that bus drivers have more discipline). We know the plight of the commuters,” he said.

He said that he appreciates MAP’s recommendations, but added that the problem should be looked at more holistically. “‘Di lang empleyado nila nale-late (it’s not just their employees who become late) — that’s everyone’s concern anyway.”

Mr. Nebrija said that MAP should directly propose recommendations to MMDA and other agencies like the Department of Transportation.

“They recommend but do they have the numbers? How extensively did they study this to recommend this? Yes, we understand the plight of their employees and their business but recommendations need to be sound and holistic. We need to simulate it,” he said.

“Why don’t they sit down with us — set an appointment. They should write us a letter and make this formal.” — Jenina P. Ibañez

Counting SEA Games’ risks and benefits

November 29, 2019 | 12:31 am

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

LOGISTICAL glitches and allegations of corruption threaten to mar the Philippines’ hosting of the biennial Southeast Asian Games this year, which the country is doing for the fourth time in history.

Unlike previous hostings in 1981, 1991 and 2005, this year’s 30^th SEA Games has generated much buzz, going beyond talk of medal projections.

Organizers see the Nov. 30-Dec. 11 games — touted as the “biggest and best” — as an opportunity to showcase the Philippines while reaping the potential windfall.

About 9,000 athletes and officials from 11 nations in the region will participate in 530 events in 56 sports, besides 9,000 volunteers.

The 2019 SEA Games, which was supposed to be hosted by Brunei until it backed out for “organizational reasons,” has a budget of at least P7.5 billion.

Critics have questioned the propriety of the budget and the way it has been used. Opposition Senator Franklin M. Drilon argued the sport event could have been hosted at a lower cost, citing the SEA Games “cauldron” tower that cost P55 million to build. He said it was unacceptable to spend so much on a structure that would likely be used just once.

Mr. Drilon, who wants a congressional probe for possible misuse of funds, has also asked why the government had to spend P9.5 billion to build the New Clark City sports facilities instead of just upgrading the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila.

He also questioned the necessity of having the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee supervise the event when agencies such as the Philippine Sports Commission and Philippine Olympic Committee could have done the job.

Speaker Alan Peter S. Cayetano, who heads the committee, has described the “cauldron” as a “work of art” designed to showcase Filipino ingenuity, while newly built sports facilities, including a stadium and an aquatic center, were worth the price tag.

In the days leading to the start of the games, some people sought a ceasefire to allow organizers to focus on their hosting duties.

But logistics woes — including the transportation and hotel accommodation of athletes, media accreditation and incomplete facilities — came up this week.

A stop to the bickering was supposed to prevent the athletes, particularly the Philippine team, from getting distracted.

But the question remains — Is there a need for the Philippines to host events such as the SEA Games?

Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion, chief economist at UnionBank of the Philippines, Inc., said hosting the games is worth the effort and the cost. “It is a good thing because we get to fulfill our obligations as part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations,” he said in an interview. “We also get to show the nature of Filipinos as gracious hosts.”

The SEA Games, he said, is an investment that would bear results. “Disregarding the appropriate accountability measures at this point, I still see this as a great investment in national sports development, sports tourism and consequently putting the New Clark City project on the map,” Mr. Asuncion said.

The property sector and sports tourism should benefit from the hosting, he added.

The main benefit — and risk — hosting such an event is the country’s reputation, said Robert Dan J. Roces, chief economist at Security Bank Corp., citing the potential waste of unused buildings after the games.

“But we do not see this happening to our new venues because the government — logistical snags aside — strove to develop world-class facilities,” Mr. Roces said.

“We do not see much risk that the country will fall into a Brazil-type slump where hosting the Olympics actually did more harm than good to their economy,” he added.

Margielyn Didal, an Asian Games skateboard gold medalist, said hosting the SEA Games would allow Filipino athletes to gauge “where we are in our game.”

Skateboarding will debut in the games this year. The country barely has facilities for skateboarders such as skate parks “but through the SEA Games, facilities were built in Tagaytay and hopefully it’s the start of more parks to be built,” she added.

Still, UnionBank’s Mr. Asuncion said organizers should answer allegations against them.

“Transparency can help allay fears and concerns,” he said.

“If there was nothing to hide, the organizers should continue to engage and be open to scrutiny and further accountability.”

Top 1000 firms on a roll in 2018 despite inflation spoiler

November 29, 2019 | 12:30 am

By Leo J. G. Uy Research Head
and Lourdes O. Pilar Researcher

PHILIPPINE COMPANIES continued to record double-digit earnings in 2018 despite last year’s challenges that included the almost runaway inflation that contributed to deceleration of the domestic economy and external risks.

Now on its 33^rd year, BusinessWorld’s Top 1000 Corporations in the Philippines ranks private and public stock entities according to gross revenue using the latest available full-year audited financial statements, which for most companies on the list pertain to their performance in 2018.

The Top 1000 roster is based on parent-only financial statements, in which parent firms record equitized earnings of their subsidiaries and associates.

This is different from a separate list ranking the country’s top conglomerates where consolidated financial statements are used. This was expanded to 100 firms in the latest edition from 50 in previous years.

Parent companies that made the cut earned a cumulative P12.92 trillion in gross revenue and P1.56 trillion in net income in 2018, 12% and 17.2% more than in the preceding year. These compare with the top-line and bottom-line growth rates of 11.7% and 6.4% posted in the previous ranking.

Top 1000 firms’ performance in 2018 also compares to that of the overall economy’s 10.2% growth in 2018 based on current prices. To recall, the Philippine economy expanded by 6.2% based on constant 2000 prices, which fell short of the low end of the government’s 6.5-6.9% target range for 2018.

Last year also saw inflation accelerating for nine straight months, peaking at a nine-year-high 6.7% in September and October. This brought the full-year 2018 average to a decade-high 5.2% against the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) 2-4% target range for 2018. That prompted the BSP to raise benchmark interest rates by a total of 175 basis points that year.

For this year’s edition of the Top 1000, the gross revenue cutoff increased to P2.218 billion from the previous edition’s P2.023 billion, considering the financial statements that were collected.

San Miguel Corp. (SMC) grabbed the top spot on this year’s list. SMC earned P384.11 billion in gross revenue last year, twenty-four times more than P15.82 billion in 2017. The increase was caused largely by SMC’s share-swap transaction with San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc. (SMFB). A look at SMC’s financial statements showed the company recognizing a gain of P328.27 billion as part of its “Gain on sale of investments, property and equipment and others” from the exchange of shares.

Second on the list is SMC subsidiary Petron Corp., which recorded P360.81 billion in gross earnings (up 31.5%) and P351.38 billion in net sales (29.6%). Its net income, however, was down 29.2% to P6.34 billion.

In third spot was power distributor Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), which made P297.97 billion in gross revenue and P291.80 billion in net sales, higher respectively by 8.2% and 7.3% from 2017. Its net income was also up by 19.9% to P24.25 billion. Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT, Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.

Rounding up companies in the fourth to 10^th places were: Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., P219.82 billion; TI (Philippines), Inc., P163.04 billion; Philippine Airlines, Inc., P159.07 billion; BDO Unibank, Inc., P158.44 billion; Toyota Motor Philippines Corp., P151.31 billion; PMFTC, Inc., P146.98 billion; and Mercury Drug Corp., P144.67 billion.

There is also a separate table ranking the country’s top conglomerates. In the consolidated ranking, a parent company and its subsidiaries are treated as though they are a single entity. This year’s roster expanded to 100 firms from 50 in previous years.

The list of the top 100 conglomerates shows SMC and subsidiaries leading with P1.060 trillion in gross revenue in 2018, 24% more than in 2017. Top Frontier Investment Holdings, Inc. — San Miguel’s top shareholder — and its subsidiaries, as well as Petron Corp. and its business units, occupied the second and third rungs with gross revenues of P1.058 trillion and P562.72 billion, respectively, up by 24.1% and 28.9%.

In fourth to 10^th placers were: SM Investments Corp. and subsidiaries, P454.06 billion; Ayala Corp. and subsidiaries, P325.38 billion; Meralco and subsidiaries, P309.32 billion; JG Summit Holdings, Inc. and subsidiaries, P293.92 billion; SMFB and subsidiaries; P287.78 billion; GT Capital Holdings, Inc. and subsidiaries, P215.83 billion; as well as Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. and subsidiaries, P200.14 billion.

All sectors posted gross revenue growth, with 12 out of the 17 showing double-digit increases. Gross revenues of manufacturers, which made up 35.4% of the 2018 total, grew by 8.3%, while those in the financial and insurance activities (15.1% share) as well as wholesale and retail trade (20.5% share), grew by 38% and 11.1%, respectively.

Multinational companies included on this year’s list made P4.58 trillion, 9.3% more than in the previous year and accounting for 35.5% of the Top 1000.

Exporting firms included in the Top 1000 recorded P2.15 trillion in revenues, 2.3% more than in the previous year.

BusinessWorld’s Top 1000 Corporations in the Philippines can be purchased at select branches of National Book Store, Powerbooks, Fully Booked, Office Warehouse and Rustan’s Supermarket. You may also purchase a copy by calling BusinessWorld’s Circulation Department at (+632) 8535-9940. For the soft copy version (pdf), please visit bworldonline.com/bwdigitized.

Top 1000 Corporations in the Philippines: Comparison of sectoral performance in 2018

November 29, 2019 | 12:30 am

With Jagged Little Pill, Alanis Morissette gambles on new anguish

November 29, 2019 | 12:08 am

THOSE HIT SONGS with their raw, roiling emotions — from “Ironic” to “You Learn” to “Hand in My Pocket” — still carry some of the spirit of Alanis Morissette in the new Broadway musical Jagged Little Pill.

You oughta know, however, that the story isn’t hers.

Unlike shows in a steady stream of Broadway biomusicals woven with tunes pulled from pop goddesses’ catalogs — think, Carole King (Beautiful), Donna Summer (Summer), Cher (The Cher Show), which have come and gone, and Tina Turner (Tina), which just opened — the latest arrival on New York’s main stage isn’t exactly a perfect fit in this songbook sorority.

It’s not that kind of jukebox. Morissette, now 45 with three kids, insisted on that.

“When I was brought to this project, we didn’t have a book or a show or anything,” says fiftysomething director Diane Paulus, whose credits include Waitress, Hair, and Pippin, for which she won a Tony. “The one thing I was told is that this is not going to be an Alanis Morissette bio. Her one request was that it not be about her. And as much as we’re all channeling our inner Alanis, this is not her biography.”

Instead, characters, themes, and jagged emotional terrain covered in the 1995 Grammy-winning album by the Canadian singer-songwriter have been transformed into the story of a seemingly idyllic Connecticut family who, upon closer scrutiny, isn’t so picture-perfect. At all.

Race, addiction, rape, and sexuality are among the weighty issues they’re facing, thanks to book writer Diablo Cody, who, like Morissette, makes her Broadway debut with this musical seen last year at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Mass. For the cast of characters onstage, if something can go wrong, it will.

“The album is really an emotional journey,” says Cody, 41. “It was almost begging for a theatrical adaptation, because the songs are so story-driven. I could just see this story building with this family, this very image-conscious mother, and an oppressive community — the fictional town of Greenport, a wealthy, leafy hamlet. And there’s this daughter, who’s saying, ‘Everybody, wake up. Open your eyes.’ That’s where it all came from.”

Actually, not quite all.

“I also drew from my own personal life a little bit,” adds Cody, who grew up near Chicago and first made a splash with her 2007 teen pregnancy indie comedy, Juno. “I love my family, but when I was growing up, there was a lot of emphasis on how we presented ourselves. I was a suburban teenaged girl when the album came out, so I was right in the sweet spot of being able to appreciate it, and I did. I just always felt something strong for that material.”

She’s not alone. Since 1995, Jagged Little Pill has sold 33 million copies around the world, about half of that haul in the US.

“Alanis was super-prescient. The album spoke to a kind of rage I think we hadn’t experienced. It spoke to me personally,” says Paulus, who adds that her teenage daughter has now gotten hooked on the album.

Having legions of fans of the music — from teens to boomers — can’t hurt at the box office at the Broadhurst Theater, where the show earned $1.1 million in its first full week of previews in advance of its official Dec. 5 opening. And industry stats from trade group the Broadway League seem to be in the show’s favor: 66% of Broadway’s audience is female, and the average age is 40.6 years.

Still, all that doesn’t guarantee attendance. Broadway tickets are much pricier than an album, and retrofitting lyrics and putting them into the mouths of characters is always tricky business. For her production, Paulus has combined a live rock band that drifts on and off the stage and a set of gender-fluid, multiracial young dancers that pulsate in and out of the action.

Yes, Mamma Mia!, which stitched a wispy story around ABBA tunes, made a mint, raking in $624 million during its 14-year Broadway run. But, cue the sad trombone, Green Day’s American Idiot — a show that more closely resembles the Jagged Little Pill transformation of songs primarily from a single album along with some fresh material into a musical — didn’t see so much green. Despite winning two design Tonys, the 2004-concept-album-turned-2010-musical ran for about a year.

Paulus believes that timing is on her team’s side. The themes and inherent anger have a topical resonance that will strike a chord. Songs feel like “they were written yesterday for today,” Paulus says. “That’s how this music feels. That’s how the lyrics feel.”

In a one-on-one with Cody in Interview, Morissette said as much herself.

“The only song I’m not sure I stand by is ‘Not the Doctor,’ where I basically say, ‘Your s— is your s—, and my s— is my s—, and let’s just keep it church and state.’ As I get older, and after almost 10 years of marriage, I realized that in a relationship, I can participate in someone else’s pain, or histories, and not feel like I’m being dysfunctional or resistant to it. But the rest of the songs, shockingly, I can stand by.”

As Morissette stands by, time will tell if Broadway audiences step up and, even better, fall head over feet. — Bloomberg

Fruitas store network hits 1,000

November 29, 2019 | 12:07 am

By Vincent Mariel P. Galang, Reporter

FRUITAS Holdings, Inc. said its store network now exceeds 1,000, as the food and beverage kiosk operator is set to list on the stock exchange on Friday.

In a statement on Thursday, Fruitas said it has 1,036 stores around the country as of Nov. 26, after opening new kiosks in Metro Manila, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, Bulacan, Tarlac, Zambales, Cebu, Iloilo, Aklan, Davao, and Cagayan de Oro.

The company has embarked on an aggressive nationwide expansion, opening 106 new kiosks so far this year. It had ended 2018 with 930 stores.

Fruitas will debut on the stock exchange today (Nov. 29) under the ticker FRUIT. It is the fourth and last company to conduct an initial public offering (IPO) this year, following Kepwealth Property Phils, Inc. in August, and Axelum Resources Corp. and AllHome Corp. in October.

“We are happy with the results of the offering of Fruitas. The broker tranche was more than 2.5 times oversubscribed, while the local small investor tranche was a record amount for a Philippine IPO. The exceptional performance and positive response from the market prove that the public believes in Fruitas’ strong fundamentals and aggressive expansion plans in the country,” First Metro Investment Corp. (FMIC) Executive Vice-President Daniel D. Camacho was quoted as saying in a Fruitas press statement.

FMIC and BDO Capital are the joint issue managers, bookrunners, and lead underwriters for the Fruitas IPO.

The company targeted to raise up to P1.2 billion from the offering of 533.66 million shares with an over-allotment option up to 68.34 million shares. The IPO share price stood at P1.68 apiece. If overallotment option is maximized, the company’s public float will be 28.2%.

Proceeds from the offering will be used to finance Fruitas’ store openings and upgrade of existing ones, as well as introduction of new brands, repayment of debts, commissary expansion and expansion of food parks.

Philstocks Financial, Inc. research Associate Claire T. Alviar said Fruitas has good prospects, given its lower IPO price and the familiarity of its brands to investors.

“Lastly, slowdown of inflation as well is favorable for Fruitas due to higher consumer spending,” she said in a text message.

As for PNB Securities, Inc. President Manuel Antonio G. Lisbona noted that demand from the brokerage company’s clients “was around 13 times what was allocated to each PSE trading participants.”

In a research note for Fruitas, PNB Securities sees “bright prospects amidst a competitive environment” for the company, given its good record of introducing and developing brands.

PNB Securities said Fruitas’ plan to establish 200 news stores annually from 2020 to 2022 is possible due to new malls being built at the same period, with an average of 20 per year from SM Prime Holdings, Inc. (SMPH), Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC), and Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), among others.

“The IPO proceeds strengthen Fruitas’ balance sheet and enables it to expand, replace old vehicles and pay debt. With the jump in cash, net working capital becomes positive, and accounts payables and lease liabilities are seen to remain as Fruitas’ biggest liabilities with debt paid,” PNB Securities said.

In 2002, Fruitas started with a single kiosk in SM Manila, until it became a market leader in its four business segments, which include fruit shakes — Fruitas, coconut beverages — Buko ni Fruitas, meat-filled pastries — De Original Jamaican Pattie, and lemonade beverage — Johnn Lemon.

Short films, video art the focus of .giff Festival

November 29, 2019 | 12:07 am

LOCAL PRODUCTION company Globe Studios is holding a two-day art fair for video art projections and independent short films. It will be held on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1 in three venues in Makati City.

“The advent of 3D mapping and cutting edge digital projection combined with the popularity of online video platforms has once again brought short-form cinema to the forefront of global culture. However, while vlogs and influencer content abound, the true potential of the medium is hardly ever examined,” the release said.

The two-day event, called .giff Festival of Cinema, will feature five sections including vcinema.giff, a live showcase of vertical aspect ratio short films and audiovisual experiments.

Vcinema.giff will exhibit works by Japanese experimental filmmaker Takashi Makino including Deorbit (2013) alongside live video collaborations between video artists and electronic musicians like Tarsius, Auspicious Family, similarobjects, Big Hat Gang, and Baile. Visual works by Timmy Harn, Sublingua, submachines., Mvtiverse, Dex Fernandez, and Annie Pacana will also be on display.

The festival will also be holding two competitions: the National Short Film Competition which features “the best in animated, experimental, documentary, music, and narrative short”, and Vertical Cinema competition by OPPO Reno, a silent film competition with entries backed by a live score.

The competition films will be on view for two days at Black Market and Warehouse 8 in Makati. Awards will be given on Dec. 1 at Illumination Studio.

The judges for the competitions are film directors Antoinette Jadaone, Carlos Ledesma, and Treb Monteras, film critic Richard Bolisay, producer Bianca Balbuena, actress Jasmine Curtis-Smith, and Globe Studios head Quark Henares.

Globe Studios is also doing a short film lab to “educate and guide the next generation of filmmakers through the first step of their cinematic journey,” a press release said.

Masterclasses featuring directors JP Habac, Raymond Red, Antoinette Jadaone, and American avant-garde director Zev Deans will be held on Dec. 1 at the Illumination Studio in Makati City,

The films.giff and art.giff sections will feature screenings and projections from local and international festival winning directors and artists such as Qiu Yang, Hito Stereyl, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Ed Atkins, Forensic Architecture, and local art collectives namely 98B Scope, Lost Frames, and Los Otros.

A special directors showcase will also figure as part of the program, featuring Globe Studios-produced films like Carlo Manatad’s The Imminent Immanent (2018) and Eileen Cabiling’s short film Basurero (2019), which premiered in Busan International Film Festival, and Keith Deligero’s Ilawom sa Kahoy. The screenings will be held on Nov. 30 at the Illumination Studio.

The first day of the festival will end with a “progressive audio-visual, sensory party experience reminiscent of club parties in Europe and the United States,” said the release and will be headlined by Jakarta-based DEKADENZ.

For more information regarding the full schedule, visit the festival’s website at giff.ph and its various social media pages. The .giff Festival of Cinema runs from Nov. 30 to Dec. 1 at Illumination Studios, Warehouse 8, and Black Market in Makati City. — ZBC

SM Prime to issue up to P20-B bonds

November 29, 2019 | 12:06 am

SM PRIME Holdings, Inc. (SMPH) is set to issue up to P20-billion worth of bonds, which were given the highest credit rating by the Philippine Rating Services Corp. (PhilRatings).

In a statement, PhilRatings said the Sy family-led property giant is planning to issue P15 billion worth of bonds, with an oversubscription option of up to P5 billion.

This is the initial tranche of SMPH’s three-year shelf registration debt securities program of up to P100 billion.

PhilRatings assigned a PRS Aaa credit rating to the bonds, which means these obligations are “of the highest quality with minimal credit risk.” The rating was also given a stable outlook, which means it is unlikely to change within the next 12 months.

“The issue rating reflects SMPH’s strong brand equity; its solid track record across a well-diversified portfolio; its sound financial profile, supported by strong recurring income; and the company’s highly-experienced board and management,” the local credit rating agency said.

SMPH, a subsidiary of SM Investments Corp. (SMIC), has four operating segments — malls, residential, commercial, and hotels and convention centers.

For the first nine months of 2019, SMPH reported a net income attributable to equity holders of the parent of P27.59 billion, 18% higher than the P23.43 billion a year ago.

This was on the back of a 14% rise in consolidated revenues to P85.03 billion during the nine-month period. Rental revenues jumped 8% to P44.91 billion “due to strong tenants’ sales, rental rate escalations, and expansion of leasable areas and temporary selling areas.”

As of end-September, the company had 73 malls with a gross floor area (GFA) of 8.5 million square meters (sq.m.) in the Philippines, and seven malls in China with a GFA of 1.3 million sq.m.

“Average daily pedestrian count for the (Philippine) malls was 4.2 million. Average mature mall occupancy rate was a high 97%, as of September 30, 2019. Overall same-mall sales growth in the first nine months of 2019 was 7%, year-on-year,” PhilRatings noted.

SMPH currently has 12 office buildings with a combined GFA of 662,000 sq.m., as well as eight hotels, four SMX Convention Centers and three Megatrade Halls.

“Recurring cash flows from SMPH’s expanding mall, office and hotel/convention center portfolios support its strong liquidity position and sound capital structure. Out of total rental revenue, 88% is contributed by malls, and the rest from offices, hotels, and convention centers,” PhilRatings said.

“Operating cash is expected to remain as SMPH’s primary funding source for growth-related capital expenditures, as completed rent-generating projects further contribute to the Group’s stable cash flows. Strong internal cash generation has allowed SMPH to keep its sound leverage position, with debt kept at very manageable levels,” it added.

Meanwhile, PhilRatings also kept the PRS Aaa credit rating and stable outlook on the company’s outstanding rated bonds worth P100 billion. — CRAG

The loneliness of a highbrow teenage songwriting robot

November 29, 2019 | 12:06 am

MEET YONA. She loves reading Margaret Atwood and articles about teenage life and sings about loneliness and relationships on her newly released track.

If this sounds a bit scripted, that’s because it is: Yona’s not human.

Yona has been created by London-based company Auxuman and trained using artificial intelligence, fed on music and literature, and learning from reactions to her music posted online.

Auxuman was co-founded by Ash Koosha, Isabella Winthrop and Negar Shaghaghi. It builds AI-based characters and licenses them for entertainment, branding or live performances. Along with Yona, Auxuman also created Mony, Zoya, Hexe and Gemini — each with their own individualities.

“The question for me always was how I can make a very intriguing, complete and complex piece of music only using a computer,” Koosha said in an interview.

Artificial intelligence is being used by the music industry to invent new tools and sounds or, in Auxuman’s case, entirely new musicians.

One of the first major projects was launched several years ago by Sony’s CSL Research Lab in Paris, which developed a system called FlowMachines that learns music styles from a large database of songs.

French composer Benoît Carré, who was working with the Sony researchers at the time, fed the machine 470 lead sheets of Jazz standards from 1930s up through the 1960s. The final result was his first AI-generated song, released in 2016: “The Ballad of the Shadow.”

Carré continues to work with researcher Francois Pachet, who’s since moved to Spotify Technology SA, where he leads its Creator Technology Research Lab. They created other AI tools which Carré has employed in his latest album titled American Folk Songs, released in October.

At Luxembourg-based Aiva Technologies, Chief Executive Officer Pierre Barreau taught an algorithm to learn patterns in music based on 30,000 scores by Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and others. Aiva’s program helps composers create new music for background use in movies and commercials, or for corporate branding at events.

Barreau and his team recently trained Aiva on compositions by the Czech composer Antonin Dvorak. The machine suggested a potential ending for an unfinished symphony by Dvorak, played for the first time by the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra in November.

Despite the advances, the music industry is still far away from being subsumed entirely by AI-generated songs, according to music critic Anthony Fantano, host of YouTube channel The Needle Drop.

Humans will always want to be able to play music as an outlet, Fantano said, and many still look to music as a way to relate to the hardships evoked by the artist.

“That cannot simply be recreated with an AI,” he said. — Bloomberg

Vista Land sets interest rates for retail bond offering

November 29, 2019 | 12:05 am

VISTA LAND & Lifescapes, Inc. (VLL) has set the interest rates for the fixed-rate retail bonds worth up to P10 billion that it is set to issue next month.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange, the Villar-led property developer said the interest rate for its fixed-rate retail bond is pegged at 5.6992% per annum. The bonds have a tenor of five years and six months, due June 2025.

The bonds will have a base size of P5 billion with an oversubscription option of up to P5 billion.

The base amount of P5 billion will be taken from the company’s remaining shelf registration approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on July 18, 2017. Any oversubscription of up to P5 billion will be issued from the P30-billion new shelf registration.

VLL said the bonds will be offered through the joint issue managers, joint lead underwriters and joint bookrunners — China Bank Capital Corp., PNB Capital and Investment Corp. and SB Capital Investment Corp. from Friday (Nov. 29) to Dec. 10.

The bonds are expected to be issued on Dec. 18.

Credit Rating and Investors Services Philippines, Inc. has given VLL its top credit rating of AAA. VLL’s retail bonds also received PRS Aaa rating from the Philippine Rating Services Corporation (PhilRatings).

In a statement issued last week, PhilRatings said it considered three factors in giving VLL the highest credit rating: the company’s diversified portfolio, its improving profitability and the favorable real estate industry outlook.

The listed firm, which is known for residential brands such as Camella and Camella Condominium (COHO), has been expanding its mass market mall portfolio.

PhilRatings cited VLL’s acquisition of Starmalls, Inc. in 2015, which it said helped diversify the company’s portfolio.

“VLL has built over 400,000 homes, 31 malls, 52 commercial centers and seven office buildings. As of September 30, 2019, the company’s projects were distributed in 147 cities and municipalities in 49 provinces throughout the Philippines,” PhilRatings said.

PhilRatings also took note of the 11.9% compound annual growth rate of VLL’s consolidated revenues since 2014. It said the company was able to maintain strong margins as its average gross profit margin stood at 59.8% over the past five years.

In the first nine months of 2019, VLL’s attributable net income increased 12% to P8.83 billion, as its consolidated revenues grew 9% to P34.36 billion.

The company also said it plans to raise up to P40 billion from the bond market to fund its residential and commercial projects. — CRAG

Actor Henry Cavill coming to Manila for The Witcher launch

November 29, 2019 | 12:05 am

NETFLIX has announced that actor Henry Cavill (Mission Impossible Fallout, Man of Steel), who stars as Geralt of Rivia in the upcoming Netflix Original Series The Witcher, is coming to the Philippines in December. Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, the series’ showrunner, will join Cavill to celebrate the launch of this epic adventure series.

Cavill will attend #TheWitcherInManila event on Dec. 12, 5 p.m. onwards, at Activity Center of the Ayala Malls Manila Bay in Parañaque City. Access to the event is on a first come, first served basis as there is limited space available. Fans can also immerse themselves in the world of The Witcher with a photo zone which will be open from Dec. 10-13, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Early birds at the venue on Dec. 12 can also get swag from the show, and the opportunity to watch the first episode of The Witcher.

Based on the best-selling fantasy series of books, The Witcher is the story of the intertwined destinies of three individuals in a vast world where humans, elves, witchers, gnomes, and monsters battle to survive and thrive, and where good and evil is not easily identified.

Netflix recently announced a second season pick up for The Witcher. The second season will begin production in London early in 2020, for a planned debut in 2021. The Witcher premieres on Netflix on Dec. 20.

CA upholds ruling on regular status of GMA Network talents

November 29, 2019 | 12:05 am

THE Court of Appeals (CA) affirmed its decision recognizing the regular status of 96 workers classified by GMA Network, Inc. as “talents.”

In a two-page resolution dated Nov. 25, the court’s former Special 14th Division denied the motion for reconsideration of the company and its CEO Felipe L. Gozon, saying the arguments raised were addressed in its decision issued in February.

“(W)e find the arguments set forth therein to be plain reiterations of those issues already deliberated and passed upon,” according to the resolution written by Associate Justice Zenaida T. Galapate-Laguilles.

“We thus find no compelling reason that warrants a modification much less a reversal of the assailed Decision dated February 20, 2019,” it added.

The appellate court in February upheld the decision of the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) in 2015 which ruled that members of Talents Association of GMA Network (TAG) are regular employees who are entitled to security of tenure and benefits.

In a statement, TAG said the court’s decision only confirms “that we are, indisputably, regular employees of GMA Network.”

“If GMA takes the option to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, we will welcome the opportunity to present our case to the High Court, and hopefully carve out jurisprudence that can benefit not just media workers, but all contractual workers,” it said.

In the February decision the court rejected the claim of the network that there was no employee-employer relationship as talents “were merely engaged independent contractors” hired for their specialized skills and compensated with high talent fees.

The court, citing the Labor Code, ruled that talents are regular employees as they are part of the production crew, whose work is necessary to run GMA’s business.

“Truly, without their work, petitioner GMA would have nothing to air, hence the private respondents’ services in the former’s television program were unquestionably necessary,” according to the decision. “Needless to state, petitioner GMA’s goal was to ensure excellent delivery of its programs to the viewing public. This could not have been achieved had it not been for the skills of the private respondents,” it added.

The court also said the NLRC did not commit grave abuse of discretion in issuing its ruling.

It also said that the “talents” were controlled and supervised by GMA and the network has set standards for them to follow.

Associate Justices Mario V. Lopez and Gabriel T. Robeniol concurred in the decision.

Asked to comment, GMA declined, with its legal department not yet in possession of copy of the resolution. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

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