Senate OKs bill abolishing Optical Media Board

The Senate on Monday approved on third and final reading a measure seeking to abolish the Optical Media Board (OMB) and transfer its powers and functions to the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL).

Senators voted 20-0 in favor of Senate Bill No. 1654 during the plenary session, with no abstentions.

The OMB was established in 2003 under Republic Act No. 9239, also known as the Optical Media Act, to regulate the production, use, and distribution of optical media such as CDs (compact discs) and DVDs, (digital video discs) and to curb piracy in the Philippines.

At the time, disc-based piracy was a major threat to the country’s creative industries.

Sponsor Senator Robinhood Padilla said the OMB has become obsolete as disc-based piracy has sharply declined with the shift from physical media to digital and streaming platforms.

He also assured that OMB employees affected by the closure will be absorbed by IPOPHL without any reduction in salaries or benefits.

“Ang mga taga-OMB ay mailipat sa IPOPHL kaya wala pong mawawalan ng trabaho,” Padilla said.

(OMB employees will be transferred to IPOPHL, so no one will lose their jobs.)

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, author of the bill, added that abolishing the OMB “represents a strategic move toward improving government efficiency and redirecting taxpayer money toward high-impact programs.”

“As chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, it's important for us to provide financing for projects and programs that are relevant and responsive to the needs of our country,” Gatchalian said.—MCG, GMA Integrated News