Cheap VCD Players

My friends were surprised to learn I still don't own a VCD player. I mean, here's a computer and here's a web site, so where's the VCD player?

It's expensive, I explained.

Afterall, a brand new Sony VCD Player costs a little under P7,000 in one of the more popular appliance stores in Manila.

Nope, it's just P1,800...

My friends laughed. It was obvious I hadn't been to some popular hills in San Juan. So I did a search for cheap vcd players in the Philippines, and look at what turned up:

'Killing me loudly': RP's music, recording industry reels from piracy. "His attitude towards pirated VCDs and audio CDs is shared by millions of other Filipino consumers who continue to patronize pirated products."

POBLAW NEWSLETTER (June 2002). "Apparently, no real harm is done. Riding the bandwagon easily proves a satisfying notion of being a part of something significant for a time. When the market offers cheap items, who would dare not give in?"

Stop Piracy Now: An amateurish attempt to dissect some truths and illusions surrounding piracy. "Piracy is merely the milking cow of society's greater evils, which include illegal drug trafficking, gun smuggling and even child prostitution."

Yikes... Is this for real? I got some VCDs lately for only P150. They look legit. They have those hologram stickers and all. I wonder if this is industry's way of coping with cheap, pirated VCDs...

[ First posted on 10/28/2002 by Manuel Viloria ]