by Jaileen Jimeno

QUIAPO, MANILA—Jack, 27, likes to spend Sunday mornings in Quiapo, but not to attend Mass at its famous church or to buy the amulets and potions proffered by many vendors there. Rather, he goes straight for an apartment, one of many in a block that double as DVD stores. Pirated DVDs, that is. There, Jack has his pick of the latest titles, at a fraction of the price they would fetch in the malls.

One recent Sunday, though, Jack's usual Sunday shopping spree in Quiapo was rudely interrupted by policemen in full battle gear, who suddenly barged into the apartment, along with members of the Presidential Security Group and operatives of the Videogram Regulatory Board (VRB), and declared a raid. Jack managed to slither out unnoticed into the street, where he found a yellow police line band surrounding the whole block. As the authorities began hauling out bootlegged video compact discs (VCDs) and digital video discs (DVDs) from the backstreet stores, action film star and newly minted VRB chair Ramon 'Bong' Revilla Jr. arrived to the clicking of cameras. If it had all been a movie shoot, it would have been a rather perfect take.

Revilla, however, wants it known that the raids he has been conducting against video pirates are more than just for show. No less than President Arroyo dramatized her support for the young VRB chief's efforts by showing up on July 25 at Camp Crame, where a steamroller ran over and crushed some P80-million worth of pirated audio and video discs as she and a beaming Revilla watched.

But insiders in the trade challenge Revilla to take a more intellectual approach in doing his job, instead of going on action-packed raids that are reminiscent of scenes in his movies. Hitting the vendors in Quiapo, Greenhills and street corners, they say, is like spraying air freshener to get rid of a stink instead of throwing out the garbage.

"Revilla should follow the route of the video pirates," says Ricky, a former seller of pirated DVDs. If Revilla takes that literally, that may mean his having to go to go to grimy piers, some dingy airport down south, or aboard some international vessels.

Most bootlegged DVDs in Quiapo and Greenhills come from Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia. These enter the country through the backdoor, either through airports and piers in Davao or Cebu. Those coming from China and Hong Kong are brought in by air travelers who land at the Manila airport. They place the discs and disc sleeves in separate pieces of luggage. The title covers are placed in a folder. The scheme is either very effective or customs inspectors merely turn a blind eye.

Ricky himself says he got the idea to sell pirated DVDs last year, after he took one of those package tours to Hong Kong, where he saw many titles unavailable in the Philippine market. He expanded his business almost as soon as he began, adding several cities in China as his source of bootlegged discs. Ricky didn't even bother to open a store, selling only to friends. Yet he was able to save enough money to settle some loans, pay his children's tuition, and keep up with his bills. Not bad for a sideline that allowed him to travel on weekends and didn't demand too much of his time.

Ricky says his mark-up was as much as 500 percent. But a few months ago, he called it quits.

"Those people in Quiapo are killing the business," says Ricky. He complains that even small-time sellers like him find it hard to compete with the rock-bottom prices of the traders in Quiapo. "They're happy even with just a P5-profit margin per piece," he sighs.

But Ricky may have gotten out of the illegal trade just in the nick of time. That's if one is to believe Revilla, who says he is planning more raids against vendors even as a separate plan against big-time players is already in the works.

"I have asked the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to keep an eye on the possible DVD and VCD shipments that may enter the Bureau of Customs, post offices, and even those in Subic," Revilla says. Even those who legally own replicating machines are under scrutiny, as there are reports some of them may be the source of bootlegged local movies.

Revilla estimates some P3-billion worth of pirated DVDs and VCDs are in the market right now. So far, the raids he has conducted netted some P240-million worth of the contraband discs.

The illegal industry, however, may be moving faster than Revilla. A check with a blank CD maker reveals a piece can sell for as low as P18. The price can be pulled down further if the sale involves large volumes. A single replicating machine can churn out as much as 34,000 copies in a day. The thousands of discs lost in a raid can thus be recouped in a couple of days.

Revilla may also want to consider a reality check — Ricky says among his former clients were lawmakers, local officials, businessmen and even a Cabinet member.

Ricky warns that Revilla's frequent raids may even become counterproductive in the fight against piracy. He said the "raiders" and traders may end up forging a modus vivendi of sorts, allowing the illicit business to persist with under the table imprimatur. Ricky said of the raids, "Ningas-cogon lang iyan (They'll lose interest soon enough)." As for the trade in pirated discs, he predicts, "Balik ulit iyan, at mas lalakas lalo pagdating ng Pasko (The sellers will return to business, and their sales will continue to surge especially come Christmas)."

True enough, business remains strong in Quiapo and Greenhills, although the stores are doing their illegal transactions more discreetly. As for Jack, he is only thankful he hadn't bought any discs yet when the police came. "Otherwise," he says, "they would have seized my purchases, too." But he has since returned to the same apartment in Quiapo, and he describes it as busy as ever. He may even be there again next Sunday.

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PHILIPPINE CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM