QuestionsQuestions (MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 2018-001)
It is issued pursuant to Board Resolution No. 18-03-03 and the Optical Media Board (OMB) powers and functions under Section 10, subsections (a) and (c) of Republic Act No. 9239, relative to the formulation of policies and granting and/or renewal of licenses.
The Circular states that vinyl records cannot be classified as a “technical variation” because the technology was already available at the time of the creation of R.A. 9239, unlike technologies that were unforeseeable at the time the law was enacted.
The Circular covers importation, exportation, manufacture, distribution, sale, rental, and other commercial transactions involving vinyl records.
Importation, exportation, manufacture, distribution, sale, rental, and other commercial transactions involving vinyl records are no longer subject to the registration and licensing requirements of the Optical Media Board.
No. Section 2 clarifies that the Circular is without prejudice to licensing and other legal requirements that may be imposed by law and other government agencies.
It means the Circular’s relaxation of OMB registration/licensing for vinyl records does not eliminate or override other existing regulatory requirements imposed by other laws or government agencies.
The preamble explains that vinyl records, while storage media devices, are not “technical variation” under R.A. 9239 since the technology existed at the law’s enactment; and that the OMB aims not to stifle legitimate business but to promote a level playing field without unnecessary burden to the public.
The Circular applies prospectively, but it states that pending applications in the RLD from the date of effectivity of the Circular are not prejudiced.
It means the Circular governs future actions from its effectivity date onward rather than retroactively changing outcomes or requirements for past transactions.
It states that the prospectivity rule is “without prejudice to pending applications in the RLD” from the date of effectivity of the Circular.
All orders, issuances, or parts thereof inconsistent with the Circular are repealed or modified accordingly.
It reflects the severability doctrine: if any provision is declared invalid or unconstitutional, the remaining provisions remain valid and subsisting.
It takes effect within fifteen (15) days from publication.
The Circular’s effectivity is tied to publication; it takes effect within fifteen days from the date of publication.
No. Section 2 preserves other licensing and legal requirements imposed by law or other government agencies.
Under the Circular’s reasoning, if the technology was already available at the time of R.A. 9239’s enactment, the product should not be treated as “technical variation” for purposes of OMB regulation under this Circular’s logic.
If the technology was unforeseeable and thus qualifies as a “technical variation,” it may remain subject to OMB regulation, consistent with the preamble’s contrast between foreseeability and technical variation.
Because Section 1 removes the requirement for registration and licensing of OMB for vinyl records, new applications would generally become unnecessary under OMB rules; however, Section 3 states pending applications in the RLD are without prejudice from the Circular’s effectivity.