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WCN CEO Rod Maceda Empowers HUBATAHM Artists With a No-Commission Merchandising Deal, Independent Fan Events, and New Income Opportunities
"An artist-centered initiative built on creative freedom, entrepreneurship, character development, and a win-win partnership."
By Nick Sandoval
CEBU CITY — In a move that highlights artist empowerment, entrepreneurship, and mutual collaboration, Rod Maceda - the CEO of WCN has authorized all WCN HUBATAHM artists to use the V-CINEMA and V-DRAMA logos on approved merchandise for sale, with WCN taking no cuts or commissions from their merchandise earnings.
But the initiative goes beyond merchandise. Each HUBATAHM artist is also allowed to organize their own Comic Convention, fan convention, or Meet-and-Greet event to generate personal income and build stronger relationships with their respective fan communities.
Together, these opportunities introduce a decentralized business model that gives artists greater independence while helping expand the reach of WCN's entertainment brands. The arrangement also reflects a reciprocal partnership in which the artists allow WCN to use their AI Hybrid Models in the company's vertical films and dramas.
At its heart, the initiative is about creating opportunities for both the company and its artists to benefit from their collaboration.
Artists as Independent Merchandising Partners
Not every customer will buy merchandise directly from WCN, just as not every fan will choose to purchase from the same artist. People have different preferences, favorite personalities, and individual reasons for supporting particular artists.
Recognizing this reality, WCN allows each HUBATAHM artist to sell approved merchandise independently, effectively giving each artist the opportunity to operate like an individual store branch.
Some customers may prefer purchasing directly from WCN, while others may feel a stronger connection with a particular artist and choose to buy from that artist instead.
Rather than treating these different purchasing preferences as competition, the initiative creates more opportunities for everyone. Each artist becomes another potential point of access for V-CINEMA and V-DRAMA merchandise, helping extend the brands' reach while allowing artists to explore additional sources of income.
Most importantly, WCN will not take a commission or percentage of the artists' merchandise sales under this arrangement. This allows participating artists to retain their merchandise earnings, subject to their own expenses and applicable obligations.
The concept recognizes that supporting an artist can be a personal experience. For some fans, purchasing directly from their favorite artist makes the transaction more meaningful because they know their support goes toward someone they personally admire.
What Merchandise Can HUBATAHM Artists Sell?
The authorization covers specific categories of approved merchandise bearing the permitted V-CINEMA and V-DRAMA branding, subject to WCN's applicable logo-use guidelines.
The permitted categories include:
Apparel: Branded clothing and ukay-ukay or secondhand clothing, including T-shirts, jeans, sweaters, and jackets.
Fashion accessories: Bracelets, necklaces, watches, caps, bonnets, and other appropriate accessories.
Footwear and essentials: Shoes and socks.
********: ******** products.
Stationery: Notebooks.
Drinkware: Mugs.
Artist merchandise: The artist's own posters and stickers.
Artists must ensure that the products they sell comply with applicable laws, WCN's policies, and the relevant intellectual property rights of others. Permission to use the V-CINEMA and V-DRAMA logos does not automatically grant permission to use third-party copyrighted artwork, photographs, or trademarks.
A Strict No-******** and No-Harmful-Products Policy
Although WCN is opening new merchandising opportunities, the authorization is not an unrestricted license to sell any product.
The following are prohibited under this arrangement:
********: No ********-related products, betting services, ******** promotions, or online ******** activities—even if a particular activity is legally permitted.
Food and food products: No food products intended for consumption.
Food supplements: No dietary supplements, vitamins marketed as supplements, or similar ingestible products.
Beauty products: No cosmetics, skincare products, or other beauty and personal-care products.
Drugs and restricted substances: No îllégâl drugs, prohibited substances, or unauthorized pharmaceutical products.
Weapons: No weapons or weapon-related merchandise.
Other harmful or prohibited products: No îllégâl, dangerous, exploitative, or otherwise disallowed items.
The guiding principle is straightforward: No ********, no food, no supplements, no beauty products, no drugs, no weapons, and no other prohibited merchandise.
These restrictions establish clear boundaries for participating artists, protect the reputation of the V-CINEMA and V-DRAMA brands, and encourage responsible business practices.
Every Artist Can Build Their Own Fan Events
Beyond merchandise sales, each HUBATAHM artist is also allowed to organize their own Comic Convention, fan convention, or Meet-and-Greet event to generate personal income.
This opportunity gives artists another way to connect with their supporters beyond online interactions, social media engagement, and merchandise transactions.
Depending on the event format, artists may offer admission tickets, autograph sessions, photo opportunities, meet-and-greet packages, fan activities, and approved merchandise sales. These activities can provide additional revenue opportunities while giving fans a chance to interact with the artists they admire.
The idea follows the same principle behind the merchandising arrangement: not every fan will attend a WCN-organized event, and not every supporter will choose to meet the same artist.
Some fans may be especially interested in attending a particular artist's convention because of their personal connection with that artist. Others may prefer a smaller, more intimate meet-and-greet rather than a larger entertainment event.
By allowing artists to organize their own activities, WCN recognizes that every artist has a distinct audience with its own interests, preferences, and level of engagement.
Independent events can also help artists develop entrepreneurial skills, including event planning, budgeting, marketing, audience engagement, and customer service. Artists must learn to coordinate activities, manage expenses, communicate clearly, and create a positive experience for their attendees.
Naturally, independently organized events must comply with applicable permits, venue requirements, safety standards, and relevant WCN branding and event guidelines.
This additional opportunity strengthens the initiative's broader objective: allowing artists to explore different ways to earn income while building their individual identities and communities.
Beyond Sales: A Practical Opportunity for Character Development
One of the initiative's most interesting potential benefits is its emphasis on personal growth and public behavior.
Selling merchandise and organizing fan events require more than popularity. Artists must also learn to communicate effectively, answer questions politely, handle complaints professionally, and treat their supporters with kindness and respect.
In this arrangement, maintaining positive relationships with fans becomes a practical part of doing business.
Rather than relying entirely on formal orientations or repeated reminders from WCN about appropriate public behavior, artists have opportunities to develop these qualities through their own experiences with customers and event attendees.
Every inquiry, transaction, photograph, autograph session, and face-to-face conversation becomes a chance to practice patience, courtesy, professionalism, and gratitude.
After all, fans are not simply potential buyers. They are individuals who voluntarily choose whom to support, where to spend their money, and which events to attend.
An artist who wants to build a loyal fan base must understand that an appealing product or a successful event may attract attention, but respectful treatment and a positive experience can help encourage lasting support.
This creates a potential two-birds-with-one-stone benefit: artists gain additional income opportunities while also developing stronger interpersonal skills and a more professional public image.
The arrangement does not guarantee that every artist will automatically develop these qualities. However, it provides real-world opportunities to learn that kindness, accountability, and professionalism are valuable not only in public relations but also in entrepreneurship.
In this sense, character development becomes part of the experience rather than simply a topic discussed during an orientation.
The X-Deal: A Reciprocal Exchange of Opportunities
The initiative also reflects a reciprocal relationship between WCN and its HUBATAHM artists.
While WCN permits participating artists to use the V-CINEMA and V-DRAMA logos on approved merchandise without collecting commissions, the artists, in turn, allow WCN to use their AI Hybrid Models in the company's vertical films and dramas, subject to the agreed permissions and conditions.
This creates what can be described as an X-deal—a mutually beneficial exchange in which both parties contribute something of value and receive opportunities in return.
WCN gains access to the artists' AI Hybrid Models for its vertical entertainment productions, while the artists gain opportunities to develop their own merchandise businesses and organize independent fan events.
The arrangement connects several areas of creative and commercial activity: vertical film and drama production, merchandise entrepreneurship, event organization, and fan engagement.
Instead of relying exclusively on traditional financial arrangements, the partnership emphasizes shared resources, creative collaboration, and mutual support.
To maintain a transparent and sustainable relationship, clear agreements covering logo usage, AI Hybrid Model permissions, intellectual property rights, event responsibilities, and applicable merchandising guidelines can help protect both the company and the participating artists.
When each party understands its rights and responsibilities, the arrangement has greater potential to become a productive long-term collaboration.
A Different Approach to Artist Empowerment
The initiative reflects an approach in which artists are given opportunities to participate more actively in their own commercial growth.
Through approved merchandise, each artist can explore independent sales without paying WCN a commission on those sales under the arrangement. Through conventions and meet-and-greet events, artists can create experiences that strengthen their connection with their supporters while potentially generating additional income.
Meanwhile, WCN can benefit from expanded brand exposure through artist-led merchandise activities and from the authorized use of AI Hybrid Models in its vertical films and dramas.
Fans also gain more ways to support their favorite artists, whether by purchasing merchandise, attending events, or participating in artist-led activities.
The model does not require every customer to buy from the company or every fan to support the same artist. Instead, it recognizes that different artists attract different audiences and that these audiences can contribute to a broader entertainment community.
At the same time, the restrictions on merchandise and the expectation of professional conduct establish important boundaries for responsible participation.
The result is a framework that combines creative opportunity with personal responsibility.
A Win-Win Situation for WCN, Its Artists, and Their Fans
At its core, this initiative is about more than logos, merchandise, or conventions. It is about creating an environment where artists can explore entrepreneurship, develop their own fan communities, and contribute to a shared entertainment ecosystem.
For HUBATAHM artists, the arrangement opens several potential income streams: approved merchandise sales, independently organized fan conventions, meet-and-greet events, and other permitted activities.
For WCN, the partnership offers additional avenues for brand exposure and a reciprocal arrangement involving the artists' AI Hybrid Models in vertical film and drama productions.
For fans, it provides more opportunities to connect with and support the artists they personally admire.
The initiative also carries a broader lesson about the relationship between opportunity and responsibility. Greater independence allows artists to make more decisions for themselves, but it also requires them to demonstrate professionalism, respect their supporters, follow the rules, and protect the trust they build with their audiences.
When artists are given the freedom to earn independently, the opportunity to develop their own fan communities, and the responsibility to treat their supporters well, everyone has the potential to benefit.
For WCN and its HUBATAHM artists, this is more than a merchandising policy or an event-organizing privilege. It is a collaborative vision in which entrepreneurship, creative production, personal development, and fan engagement can work together.
Ultimately, the goal is a partnership where WCN, its artists, and their respective fan communities can grow together—through mutual trust, responsible business practices, creative independence, and a shared commitment to success.
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