Pag-upo ni Ma. Rachel “Baby” Arenas bilang chairperson ng Movie and Television Review and Classifcation Board (MTRCB) noong Enero 20, 2017, isa sa mga isyung kinaharap niya ay ang streaming platforms, partikular ang Netflix.
Isyu pa rin iyon hanggang bumitaw si Arenas sa nasabing puwesto noong Oktubre 1, 2021 nang mag-file siya ng kandidatura sa pagka-congreswoman muli ng ikatlong distrito ng Pangasinan.
Nang makapanayam namin si Arenas nitong Pebrero 20, Linggo ng hapon, sa Arenas Farm, Malasiqui, Pangasinan ay inusisa namin siya sa kanyang saloobin sa naglipanang streaming platforms.
Maliban sa Netflix, pinag-uusapan ang Vivamax na sandamukal ang mga mapangahas na pelikulang ipinapalabas.
“Before I resigned as MTRCB chair, matagal nang napag-uusapan actually ang pag-regulate ng mga video-on-demand [VOD],” matamang pahayag ni Arenas.
“Actually, nag-start iyan because they reached out to us more than two years ago, yung mga platform like Netflix.
“And they were actually asking us, ano yung roles and regulations that they should follow, because in every country, meron talaga.
“For example, in Korea, in Japan, in Australia, they have to follow wherever they go. So, napag-usapan namin yun at the time. That was three years ago siguro.”
Sa unang presscon niya bilang MTRCB Chair sa mga taga-entertainment media noong Pebrero 2017 ay hindi pa nila nakakausap ang Netflix.
“A year after, na nakapag-meeting na rin kami with other streaming services, napag-usapan namin na magda-draft kami ng what was acceptable to them and to us,” pagbabalik-tanaw ni Arenas.
“Sabi ko nga, ‘Hindi namin kayo papahirapan. Let’s work hand in hand.’ And it’s really just a lining there to the rating system ng MTRCB — actually, to the rating system ng kultura natin sa Pilipinas.
“And they agreed at the time. Then, dumaan na po yung pandemic and then nagkaroon ng konting isyu.
“Na sabi naman namin, ‘Siyempre ngayon, especially now that children are mostly at home, everybody has access to online content, ‘no, because of their cellphones… the more we have to work together,’ so that ma-align nga yung ratings system.
“Now, I don’t know kung ano ang level na ng development niyan, because as I said, hindi na po ako yung MTRCB chair. Siguro, pinag-aaralan pa nila.
“But during my term, natapos na rin ho namin yung guidelines niyan. It’s just really a matter of talking to our stakeholders.
“Kasi, we want to talk to them first so that malaman nila that we’re working together.
“I mean, parang… it’s a meeting of the minds that we agree upon the guidelines that we have drafted.”
MTRCB GUIDELINES ON ONLINE MOVIES, SHOWS
Siyempre, ang initial reaction ng ibang stakeholders ay nainis.
“Lalo na during the pandemic na nagkaisyu, pandemic na nga, ito pa yung inuuna natin,” malumanay na lahad ni Arenas.
“Actually, it was really a long process for us. In fact, they were admitting, that it took us several months to craft the guidelines that are acceptable to both of us.
“So, naintindihan ko pag hindi naipaliwanag sa ating mga manonood, na magagalit sila.
“Pero hindi po namin ire-review kada content. Hindi. Unless merong magreklamo.
“We’re not gonna review each and every content that they have, kasi it’s impossible.”
Anu-ano bang patakaran ang dapat sundin?
“Yung parang kung ano yung G [general patronage] natin, yung parameters natin, sana yun din ang G nila,” mabilis na tugon ni Rachel.
“So, kung ano yung R-13 natin, sana yun din ang parameters ng R-13 nila.
“Kasi for example, in Korea, delayed lahat ng palabas. Kasi sa Korea, lahat nire-review. Pero kami, we’re not going to review all.
“Ang hinihingi lang namin, at least as a first step… Register with the MTRCB because you’re doing business with the Philippines.”
ONLINE CONTENT NOT UNDER MTRCB?
Naninindigan ang iba na hindi saklaw ng MTRCB ang online content. Pelikula at telebisyon lang daw ang sakop ng MTRCB.
Kailangan bang isabatas ang alituntunin kaugnay sa online content, partikular sa streaming services gaya ng Netflix at Vivamax, upang maging malinaw ang usapin?
Napabuntung-hininga si Rachel, “Well, kung gusto pa nating pagtibayin siya… but actually, MTRCB in its charter, it says ‘in any medium,’ e.
“Although they can always argue that the law was created only for movies and television three decades ago.
“But then it’s benefitting us now. Kasi, nakalagay, ‘in any medium,’ e. So, ‘in any medium’ includes the streaming services.
“It’s sort of a gray area pero pag talagang babasahin mo yung batas natin, which I already consulted a lot of lawyers… pasok din siya, e, sa MTRCB.
“Of course it’s not a popular issue, ‘no? Talagang maraming magsasabi. For example yung Pine Gap [2018].
“Nag-criticize kami for the streaming services, but then, DFA [Department of Foreign Affairs] wrote us, e. And asked us to review the Pine Gap because it’s a foreign policy issue.”
Naunang tinanggal sa Netflix Vietnam ang six-part series na Pine Gap dahil sa nine-dash controversy.
Noong Nobyembre 2021, tinanggal ang dalawang episodes ng Pine Gap sa Netflix Philippines dahil din sa nasabing reklamo. “
Parang it validated our stand that we should actually regulate,” pakli ni Rachel.
Kapag may nagreklamo sa palabas ng alinmang streaming service, doon lang aaksyon ang MTRCB.
“Yes! Hindi made-delay yung Korean telenovela ninyo, mapapanood niyo pa rin yun!” bulalas ni Rachel.
“It’s just really pag may nagreklamo — and actually marami nang nagrereklamo during my term — saka lang namin iko-call ang inyong attention.
“For example, DFA wrote us in 2021, we have to reach out to them [Netflix]. We met with them, and afterwards, parang… we asked them to take out two episodes.
“Even if sabihin nilang it’s fiction, we don’t want people to be persuaded. Kasi, the fact na inaari na nila yun, ‘no?
“Parang we don’t want the people who are watching — who don’t really know kung ano talaga ang mga nangyayari o mga issues — na mapaniwala sila at later on, ‘Ay! Nakita kasi namin, e!’”