By Macon Ramos-Araneta
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian seeks to expand the powers and functions of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) to include regulation of video and online games.
He said the setup would ensure the safety and well-being of children amid their exposure to new technologies.
Gatchalian filed Senate Bill No. 1063 or the Video and Online Games and Outdoor Media Regulation Act which seeks to amend Presidential Decree No. 1986 that created the MTRCB.
The 2020 gaming statistics, he said, reveal that 43 million gamers drove the unprecedented rise in the Philippine gaming industry and across Southeast Asia.
He noted that 74 percent of the Philippine online gaming population play on their mobile devices, 65 percent on PC games, and 45 percent on the classic console games.
Moreover, he stressed that 43 million gamers in the country spent $572 million on games in 2019.
This made the Philippines the world’s 25th’s biggest market by game revenues, as well as a key driver of Southeast Asia’s overall games market during that time.
Aside from video and online games, Gatchalian also proposes that the MTRCB also regulate outdoor media, which includes advertising signs, Light Emitting Diode (LED) signs and billboards, ground signs, roof signs, and sign infrastructures.