Asianet Pakistan Private Limited

How can you tell if you’re working for a bad company? They insist you stay and carry on working despite an earthquake.

This was allegedly what happened in several Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies in Cebu following the earthquake last September 30.

According to reports, some BPOs insisted that their employees work through the quake or immediately return to work shortly after evacuating. Never mind their fears for own personal safety; never mind their fears for the welfare of their homes or loved ones.

The boss of one company even allegedly locked their doors and threatened his workers.

‘You’re going outside? The elevator isn’t working, can you do it? Will you resign? Have you informed your team lead? Where is your team lead?’ an online news report quoted the boss as saying.

The actions of those companies have drawn the ire of the BPO Industry Employees Network and now the Department of Labor and Employment is looking into six BPOs here for allegedly being negligent when it came to the welfare of their employees.

Just the other day the department suspended the operations of one of them for safety lapses.

You will hear no complaints from us. In the face of natural disasters like earthquakes it must be people over profit. The welfare of the workers must be placed above all else.

We understand that for some BPOs, the mentality might be that the clients come first. But while profits come from clients, the workers are the ones engaging with these clients to produce those said profits. They are as essential as the clients themselves.

Considering the higher pay BPOs give their employees compared to regular jobs, we would think that those companies now under scrutiny have better standards when it comes to labor and safety practices.

If you happen to be working for a company that locks its doors to prevent people from evacuating during an emergency, perhaps it’s better think twice about staying. The good thing about BPOs is that they are plentiful here. Your choices aren’t limited.

Justice Undersecretary Fredderick Vida will serve as acting secretary of the Department of Justice (DOJ), following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s appointment of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla as the next Ombudsman.

Remulla confirmed the designation on Tuesday, October 7.

‘Usec. Vida will step in as OIC (officer-in-charge) or acting secretary,’ Remulla told reporters in a press briefing.

Transition at the DOJ. Remulla said that he and the president have yet to discuss who will permanently succeed him as justice chief.

Vida was first appointed as an assistant secretary in 2023 and currently oversees the DOJ’s Finance, Administrative Service, and Personnel Cluster.

The justice secretary’s move to the Office of the Ombudsman came just a day after the Judicial and Bar Council included him in its shortlist of nominees for the post.

Remulla is expected to take his oath of office on Thursday, October 9.

MYNLD’s owners (Anthoni Salim and the Consunji Family) are some of the most adept stock market operators that we have in this country, and the company is ‘faced’ by MVP, who has a long resume of capital market experience to justify his role in this transaction. I’m going to dig further into this IPO once the final price is known, but (for me) the price won’t have that big of an impact on my interest. Water concessionaires are not a part of my investment thesis, so I’m not about to start ripping up some of my other trades just to make some dry powder for this deal. But even if this kind of company was something that was part of my thesis, it fails as a potential investment (for me) because I invest for the long-term and I do not trust MVP to be the steady hand of growth that I usually look for when making big bets in infrastructure. It’s entirely possible that my own prejudices against the sector and the management team will cause me to miss out on something that will list and eventually get PSEi inclusion and do fantastically well over the next year or two, but that’s a risk that I’ve learned to take after all my years of investing in this market. Maybe it’s a dumb nuance of my own personal system. It does almost feel like a superstition at this point, but it works for me, just like my lucky underwear.

Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) president and chief executive officer Ramon Monzon is hoping that Maynilad Water Services Inc.’s upcoming initial public offering (IPO) will spur interest and encourage more companies go public.

Monzon expects Maynilad’s maiden issuance later this month to be the final IPO for the country this year.

Maynilad targets to list on the main board of the PSE on Nov. 7 and trade its shares using the stock symbol, MYNLD.

‘Maynilad is definitely a welcome addition to PSE’s roster of listed companies, especially as it is known to serve the largest population in a single water concession area,’ Monzon said.

Monzon said the prospect of Maynilad’s P45.77-billion IPO, which is one of the biggest maiden offerings in PSE history, has also been bolstered by the numerous cornerstone investors that have agreed to support the capital raising activity.

‘We hope this brisk demand from institutional investors will spark renewed interest and confidence in other companies to likewise tap the stock market for fund raising,’ he said.

Maynilad will be selling up to 1.66 billion primary common shares to the public and a preferential offer of up to 24.90 million primary common shares to First Pacific Co. Ltd. from Oct. 23 to 29, 2025.

The IPO will also have an overallotment option shares of up to 249.05 million primary common shares and an upsize option of up to 354.70 million secondary common shares.

Proceeds from the sale of primary shares will be used by the company for its capital expenditure program for water, wastewater and customer service information system projects, as well as for general corporate purposes.

Monzon said that another positive development for Maynilad was the recognition given by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to the water utility as the country’s first Philippine Green Equity label, affirming its continuing adherence to sustainability standards.

The Green Equity label, which was launched by the SEC last month, is handed to a PSE listed company or a company that is going public with more than 50 percent of their revenues and investments earned from or directed toward green activities.

‘We are pleased that Maynilad was granted the first Green Equity label. This landmark recognition ties in with PSE’s thrust of supporting green finance initiatives,’ Monzon said.

Maynilad’s IPO, which has been approved by the PSE, will be the second maiden offering this year, following Top Line Business Development Corp.’s P732.6 million IPO in April.

At the heart of Tokyo Game Show 2025, Riot Games debuted 2XKO, its upcoming tag-team fighting game set in the League of Legends universe.

What began as a mysterious project known only as ‘Project L’ has evolved into a bold new entry in the fighting game genre – a game that blends the developer’s multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) legacy with the competitive spirit of traditional fighters.

2XKO Game Director Shaun Rivera spoke to PhilStar.com and shared the journey to developing the game, the challenges of innovation, and the vision behind its unique gameplay.

‘Duo play’ mechanic

‘The story’s been a long one,’ Rivera recalled. ‘I think Tom and Tony Cannon founded EVO, the World Fighting Game Tournament. They went on to found Radiant Entertainment, which is a company where they made Rising Thunder. It was like a 1v1 fighting game with robots, it was really cool. And then Riot Games acquired Radiant Entertainment. From there, it was like, ‘let’s make a League of Legends fighting game, Codenamed Project L’,’ recalled Rivera.

And though feedback from early playtests showed that players were reacting well to the game, the team felt like there was something missing – it didn’t have as much of an impact they had hoped for.

‘[When] we playtested the game though, players were just like, ‘yeah that’s pretty fun, it’s not bad.’ You never want to hear that. You want to make a game that everybody’s fired up about, and has a big impact,’ added Rivera.

That realization led to a major pivot in design philosophy, not only bringing in the intensity and thrill of fighting games but also introducing something new. It was a game wherein you can take the traditional 1v1 of fighting games and incorporate what video games is all about – the enjoyment of playing with friends and fellow gaming enthusiasts.

Rivera explained, ‘Playing with your friends is super fun. So we thought, what if we made a fighting game where you could play with your friends, right? On the same team, and the game was built like that from the ground up. Not just like an extra mode.’

Keeping with its League of Legends inspiration, 2XKO incorporates the teamwork that players in MOBA has as the heart of the game.

‘In the MOBA, you see champions fighting together all the time. It’s so cool how you can like, you know, put their skills together and do well in a team fight. So we thought, wouldn’t that be really sweet if we could do that in a fighting game?’ said Rivera.

The result was 2XKO’s duo play, a system that allows two players to fight on the same team.

‘It was really challenging because we made duoplay, we made that change, kind of like starting over maybe about five years ago. But what if you can’t come tomorrow night? Does that mean I don’t get to play? Does that mean I have to fight a stranger? So of course we had to introduce solo play,’ recalled Rivera.

But as the central piece of 2XKO was developing, it still had its fair share of challenges.

‘If the control schemes aren’t similar enough, it’s really hard to bridge that gap. So we had to do a lot of work making the control schemes similar as well. Looking at the players, how much should the person off screen be able to do in a duo? Some people want to do all kinds of stuff. Some people are like, just give me a break for a second, let me take a breather. So finding that balance is also pretty challenging,’ said Rivera.

Eventually, the team found its rhythm, allowing for different scenarios to stem from duoplay. But at the heart of it was keeping 2XKO within the fighting game genre that players enjoy.

‘First and foremost, we’re making this game for fighting game players. That’s our target, you know. If you love fighting games, we want you to try and, you know, really like to check out our game and enjoy it.’

Rivera also emphasized the social aspect of the game.

‘If you’ve ever had to teach someone a fighting game, it’s really tough. Because either you’re easily beating them and hoping they stick around through those beatings, or you’re going easy on them, but you’re not having a good time, you know, hoping that they’ll learn and stick around. Neither of those are very good. So we thought, what if instead you could just bring your friend on, even if there’s a skill difference. You could take on the world together. Even if you lose, there’s cool moments in between, right? It’s less about winning and losing, more about these cool things we did together, like the combo we finished, or you broke out of the combo and saved me. Even if you lose, it’s about the cool things you did together. That’s what makes it special. Those moments and highlights you’ll cherish as a duo,’ said Rivera.

League characters in a different light

With early access launching this October, fans are eager to see which champions will join the current nine character roster that was in the closed beta.

‘There’ll be no code needed and that’s when we’re going to announce our 10th champion. We need to make sure that the champion that we pick, there’s enough diversity with respect to thematics. And that can be how they look, how they act, what they say, their attitude, their taunts, you name it. Also, to how they fight. What do they look like when they fight? But also, what are the mechanics? What type of playstyle is it?’ revealed Rivera.

With so many champions in League of Legends, choosing which character comes next to 2XKO has been a well-thought out task for the team, especially as it is not just about the popularity of the champion but also how they interact in 2XKO while staying true to their origins.

‘There are some things a person might like from a champion in the MOBA. Maybe an attack they use or maybe a voice line or how they move. But a lot of times those skills in the MOBA are designed for the MOBA. We don’t desire a lot of CC in our game where characters are just getting stunned left and right and can’t really move. So we have to be really careful in picking and choosing how we incorporate those aspects of a character in 2XKO while still making it feel true to that champion but also elevating it,’ shared Rivera.

An example would be Blitzcrank, a champion already available in the closed-beta, and how the champion has evolved from what players are accustomed to in League of Legends.

“Blitzcrank has the rocket grab to pull you in, but also wouldn’t it be cool if Blitzcrank could grab the ceiling and swing like a wrecking ball? Or Blitzcrank can spin their arm and build steam because they’re a steam golem. And then you see the steam coming out and the electricity building up. Now all of a sudden their next attack is charged,’ Rivera said, referring to how they incorporated the champions skills from MOBA differently in the fighting game.

Looking to the future of 2XKO

As for esports, Rivera acknowledged the concerns of the fighting game community.

‘There was a little bit of a fear for the fighting game community when they heard that Riot Games was making a fighting game, they thought the fighting game community had built this from the ground up. It’s really the humans, the tournament organizers, the people running the events, the locals that have carried it this far on their backs. It would be a disservice to do anything that could harm that because that’s special,’ said Rivera.

The answer is 2XKO’s First Impact Program.

‘We just announced for our early access the first impact program which is 22 tournaments for the rest of this year. We’re adding a pot bonus to it. If you win as a duo player, a duo team, you get a little additional bonus as well,’ shared Rivera.

With 2XKO’s early access this month, the game’s participation in the 2025 Tokyo Game has been a highlight for the team.

‘This is definitely a huge event for us. It’s the first time Riot Games has ever been at Tokyo Game Show. The history of fighting games starts in Japan. Paying respect to that history is something we’re super stoked to be able to do. To be able to do it here at Tokyo Game Show, it’s insane how big this is. You can feel the love, and us being able to share just a small part of what we’re doing with people that love video games in general, especially fighting game players, has been unbelievable,’ shared Rivera.

2XKO’s early access is now available on PC via the game’s official website. The game will also be released on consoles in the near future.

A new study has warned that 15% to 30% of the Philippines’ land-dwelling vertebrates could vanish, with amphibians and mammals facing the highest risk of extinction.

In a study published in the October issue of Science of the Total Environment journal, researchers from the University of Southern Mindanao found that species endemic to the Philippines – those found nowhere else on Earth – are under severe threat due to rapid habitat loss, overexploitation and lack of research attention.

From deforestation, logging, infrastructure development, to illegal wildlife trade, conditions for animal habitat have been on decline in the Philippines, a country that hosts roughly three-fifths of vertebrate species that are “endemic,” or those found nowhere else on Earth.

Yet, the researchers stressed that much of the country’s wildlife remains understudied-very concerning for a country known to be one of the world’s 17 “megadiverse” nations in need of strong conservation measures.

What they did. The researchers analyzed the ‘life-history traits’ of different species interact with external pressures affecting their survival, based on the International Union for Conversation of Nature’s Red List, which classifies species around the world according to their risk of extinction.

Life-history traits describe the full life cycle of a species, encompassing growth, development, reproduction and death, with specific traits emerging at each stage. It is also linked to a species’ fitness or ability to adapt. They compared these factors with existing data on extinction risk patterns.

1 in 4 could face extinction

The the study found that about one in four species could face extinction if current threats persist. Amphibians had the highest level of endemism and extinction risk. About 24% of the 114 amphibian species assessed were considered vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered. Mammals followed closely at 23%.

Habitat loss and overexploitation to blame. The study also discovered habitat alteration and overexploitation as two of the major threats to Philippine terrestrial vertebrates, with species heavily affected by the destruction of their habitats. The Philippines currently records the highest deforestation rate in Southeast Asia.

Amphibians were also considered the most vulnerable to habitat loss, with about 87% in the Philippines severely impacted. Many are habitat specialists found only in mountain ranges and islands, making them more exposed to invasive species that compete for food and disrupt ecological balance.

About 87% of amphibians are severely affected by habitat loss, particularly those only found in isolated mountain ranges and islands. There, they are more exposed to invasive species that compete for food and disrupt ecological balance.

Birds, while more adaptable due their ability to migrate or move across areas, are not spared, as 37% remain affected by deforestation and urban expansion.

The study found that habitat breadth, or the the range of environments a species can survive in, was the most consistent predictor of extinction risk. Species that can only live in limited habitats, such as the Philippine tarsiers in Bohol or the critically endangered Cebu flowerpecker, suffer the most.

Animals for sale. On top of habitat loss, reptiles and mammals face the greatest pressure from hunting and illegal wildlife trade, especially species that are more exotic, since rarity increases their commercial value.

The researchers said this is ‘likely related to the fact that most species have narrow habitat breadths, greater exposure to habitat alterations, direct threats, and rapid environmental changes.’

Larger animals, smaller chances. Body size was another factor correlated with extinction risk. Larger mammals face greater danger because they reproduce more slowly and require larger territories and food resources – traits that make them less resilient to human encroachment.

The researchers said this supports the hypothesis that body mass, combined with habitat loss, increases vulnerability.

Understudied species left behind

Narrowly endemic species with small population sizes that are mostly under represented in studies are likely to face greater risk of extinction and be less prioritized for conservation.

Research efforts, for example, have focused on megafauna such as the Philippine eagle, Philippine crocodile and Tamaraw, leaving equally threatened but lesser-known animals overlooked.

At least 37% of species in the Philippines can already be found in protected areas but are still classified as “data deficient,” the studied found.

What’s needed to address the crisis? The researchers stressed that it will require stronger enforcement of environmental laws, expansion of protected areas as well as research on lesser-known species.

‘Without urgent coordinated action informed by studies… the Philippines risks losing its irreplaceable biodiversity, particularly its unique and rare species,’ they wrote.

The study was conducted by Krizler Tanalgo, Kier Dela Cruz, Angelo Agduma, Asraf Lidasan, Janine Edradan, Ryza Dumayas, Jeanrose Alagdon, Berfelyn Daniela Villaruz, and Glydel Kaye Gatoc.

Filipino fans of “Friends” have the chance at recreating their favorite scenes from the popular series with the arrival of “The Friends Experience” in the Philippines.

After hitting over 30 locations in the United States, Europe, and Australia, the Experience makes its Asian debut in Manila at The Space at Solaire in Parañaque.

Aptly subtitled “The One in Manila,” “The Friends Experience” takes fans through recreated sets from the “Friends” show that starred Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry, and Matt LeBlanc.

Iconic sets include the iconic orange couch and fountain from the show’s intro, Joey and Chandler’s living room, Monica’s kitchen, and of course, Central Perk.

There are photo opportunites beside the purple door with a yellow frame, the hallway in between the two apartments, and re-enacting Ross’ attempt to “pivot!” a couch on the stairs.

Outside of recreated sets are props from the show like clothing pegs of each character, several signed scripts, Pat the Dog, and the turkey Monica wore over her head.

Detailed across the walls are numerous quotes and outtakes from the show, kicked off by messages from “Friends” showrunners David Crane and Marta Kauffman.

Fans will be most eager to read the full 18-page (back-to-front) letter Rachel wrote to Ross after snapping photos at her different hairstyles, and the full dating history of the main cast.

At the end of the Experience and open to all Solaire visitors is a retail store selling exclusive merchandise and mementos from fans’ visits like set photo opportunities.

Some items fans might want to get their hands on are stuffed toys of Marcel, The Chick, and The Duck; a necklace of the yellow frame; and clothes bearing “How you doin?” or “He’s her lobster!”

“The Friends Experience: The One in Manila” runs until November 30 at The Space at Solaire in Parañaque, courtesy of GMG Productions.

Singapore and Philippine-listed Del Monte Pacific Ltd. (DMPL) intends to raise as much as $600 million through a private placement aimed at addressing capital deficit following the deconsolidation of its US business.

DMPL said the company’s management is looking at an equity raise through private placement at Del Monte Philippines Inc. (DMPI).

The size of the offering will be announced by the company, but the estimated amount of funds to be raised from the share placement is eyed between $500 million and $600 million.

A share dilution is expected as part of the planned equity raise, but DMPL is expected to maintain a controlling interest in DMPI.

The equity raise through private placement at DMPI ‘aims to reduce the group’s leverage and address the capital deficit resulting from the recent impairments relating to the US business.’

DMPL’s management expects the equity raise to help unlock value and enhance the group’s overall valuation.

DMPL said that DMPI’s balance sheet has the capacity to support the proposed capital raise, which is seen helping reduce financing costs, replacing higher-interest debt with equity that carries a lower dividend yield.

The company also said that considering the overall market sentiment in the Philippines and the group’s current position, an initial public offering is not a viable option at this stage and it is instead looking at private placement as the fastest way to raise equity at present.

US subsidiary Del Monte Foods Holdings Ltd. and certain subsidiaries have commenced voluntary Chapter 11 proceedings in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey on July 1.

DMPL said the US business had been deconsolidated and its results presented as discontinued operations.

It said that the move ensures that uncertainties in the US operations do not affect the company’s continuing core businesses.

Much retailing now involves consumer reviews.

Yet most consumer-review systems are fatally misleading.

No purchase verification. On TripAdvisor, *anyone with an email can review any establishment* without verification. TripAdvisor claims it can detect bulk fabrication, but it has no safeguards against a few people opening 20 email accounts with which to plant 20 false reviews, enough to destroy or boost most restaurants.

‘Readers’ Choice’ awards are no better. A well-known magazine once named my hotel one of ‘Asia’s 25 Best Resorts,’ a distinction easily worth hundreds of thousands. A jealous competitor only needed to invest $100 for a few subscriptions through which to submit false reviews the following year. At the rarefied Best 25 level, very few negative reviews were needed to nudge us off the list.

Reviewer qualification. For a useful review about a restaurant in London, would you believe someone whose only previous review was of a Jollibee, or an experienced diner with reviews in many cities and countries? Yet every review system practices this foolish form of democracy, giving equal votes to everyone without considering past experience or diligence in reviewing.

The Michelin irrelevance pitfall. Michelin operates an ‘expert rating’ system. Anonymous reviewers judge restaurant food (not service, not ambience). Except they don’t. I have patronized literally hundreds of Michelin-starred restaurants around the world, from French Laundry to Maaemo to Odette (see https://plantationbay.com/dining/restaurants), and think it’s at best Hit-or-Miss. Michelin reviewers seem obsessed with ‘prettiness’ and ‘strangeness,’ but ignore the qualities that diners really care about – taste, memorability, repeatability. ‘Did I enjoy eating this? One week after, can I still remember it? Do I want to eat it again in this lifetime?’ Michelin doesn’t seem to care, so long as it looks ‘creative.’

Michelin has wandered into rating hotels now. I recently stayed at a Two-Michelin-Key hotel (a very rare accolade) in the US and it had one mediocre restaurant and a view, no other facilities to speak of, and a badly-furnished room. I wrote to a Three-Michelin-Key property with a question about their rooms and no one even bothered to answer me. Does Michelin fact-check their reviewers? Do the reviewers simply crib their ratings from TripAdvisor and Booking.com?

‘Gaming’ Amazon. Selling a $100 item? Choose Amazon’s ‘Individual Plan’ – commission $0.99 per item. Now get 10 confederates to ‘buy’ one. (With ‘merchant/vendor fulfillment,’ no need for actual shipment.) 10 five-star verified reviews for just $10.

‘Gaming’ Booking.com. A few hundred reviews are enough to give a hotel lots of credibility. Suppose rooms cost $100. A hotel lines up 300 ghost travelers to book one-night stays on Booking.com/Expedia. They don’t need to actually go there; the hotel just records that they did. At 17 percent commission, the shady hotel pays $5,100 for 300 glowing reviews, which can easily draw several hundred thousand dollars’ worth of real bookings, AND influence ‘expert reviewer’ systems by a psycho-persuasion technique called Anchoring. (Look it up). Talk about ‘Return on Investment.’ One hotel I observed was open barely a few months but quickly amassed over a thousand mostly five-star reviews. (A quality hotel is lucky to get 50 legitimate reviews a month).

Brand-name bias. Most people won’t give a chain hotel a super-low rating, because they may need to use that chain again. People also don’t badmouth celebrity-backed establishments, fearing to contradict popular opinion. Such businesses are thus largely shielded from the lowest grade ranges. No such constraints protect stand-alone properties or small brands. Brand-name bias is real and it dis-favors smaller, less-famous businesses.

‘Average’ is nonsense. An ‘average’ encompasses widely-varying views. Take Coca-Cola. Many people love it, but others might give it 1/10 on health or political grounds. Speculatively, Coke’s worldwide satisfaction average might be just 7/10, suggesting Coke is a mediocre brand. But obviously it isn’t, and 7/10 is a poor predictor of how any specific person will feel about having a Coke.

The ‘Karen’ bias. Calculating an ‘average’ gives disproportionate influence to nasty narcissists. Imagine a hotel with 10 reviews. Eight of those are 9/10. Two are 1/10 – one guest was fined for smoking, and another tried but failed to get a discount over a fabricated complaint. Both ‘get even’ by posting 1/10 reviews. This hotel has 80 percent highly satisfied customers; if YOU are not a jerk, YOU are likely to be highly satisfied, too. But the ‘average’ is 7.4, which is low enough that many travelers will remove it from consideration. The two nasty Karens were able to out-vote the eight happy customers.

Correcting this would be simple: instead of the ‘average score,’ report the ‘median’ (midway point between the upper and bottom halves), and the ‘mode’ (most frequent individual score). In the above example, the hotel’s median and mode would both be 9.0.

In summary, most ratings systems are unwittingly deceptive, and are easy to exploit for fraud and extortion.

What to do?

Whether for an Amazon or a Booking.com, require that an account be open for at least (say) six months, with at least (say) six different actual orders and reviews, before any reviews by that account become ‘live’; and further require a threshold continuing expenditure and review activity, otherwise the past reviews are deleted. We can quibble over the numbers, but the intent is to make it harder to fake verified reviews.

Ignore the top 10 percent and bottom 10 percent of scores as a quick way to compensate for Brand-name Bias. Or give users the option to select this as a filter.

Proactively investigate anomalies, and demand criminal penalties for ratings tampering and false reviews in whatever form. Lobby with legislatures accordingly.

For its own long-term reputation, Michelin needs to overhaul its criteria, and review the honesty and competence of its reviewers.

Emasculate internet blackmailers brandishing fabricated complaints and unreasonable demands, simply by reporting median and mode instead of average.

Manuel González is the owner of Plantation Bay Resort and Spa in Cebu.

Around P2 million worth of counterfeit insecticides in Valenzuela City and Tondo, Manila were confiscated by the National Bureau of Investigation recently.

The NBI said 13,412 canisters of fake Bao Li Lai aerosol insecticides and 3,042 canisters of counterfeit Big Bie Lai insecticides were seized at an establishment known as EveryJuan Shop and its warehouses.

The operation stemmed from a complaint filed by the registered trademark owners, who reported the widespread sale of counterfeit versions of their products.

Following surveillance and test-buy operations, the NBI confirmed the illegal activities and secured search warrants from the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 46.

Complaints will be filed against the owner of the establishment for trademark infringement under Republic Act 8293, the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines.