Around the Mediaverse: ARC, TAG Sign Off; Rappler Stripped of Registration

More sad news in Philippine cable television.

At midnight of January 15, the ABS-CBN Regional Channel and TAG permanently signed off the air. According to Creative Programs Inc., they cite a ‘change in business direction’ for the closure of the two channels.

The ARC was launched on August 1, 2016 in another attempt to make ABS-CBN Regional programs available outside its respective regional footprint. However, like the Sarimanok Channel (now the ABS-CBN News Channel), ARC was beset by various problems from the start and its inability to gain support from the mother network eventually led to its downfall.

Two months later, on October 19, TAG signed on, showing Tagalized foreign films. However, it also endured its fair share of problems, the most obvious of which is redundancy due to the fact that the films shown in the channel are also aired on sister channels such as ABS-CBN, CineMo, Cinema One and Yey!.

CPI will also end broadcast of the anime channel Hero on January 31. More on that in a future article.

Rappler Registration Revoked

Later that afternoon, some breaking news involving a rising media outlet shook the world of journalism. The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it revoked its registration of Rappler due to an alleged violation of a rule regarding foreign ownership of media companies.

The SEC claimed that Rappler is being controlled by the Omidyar Network, a fund created by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar. Rappler denied this statement, saying that the company is ‘100% Filipino-owned’ and that Omidyar is only an investor.

Rappler’s reported revocation of its registration was vehemently criticized by the likes of the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility and the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines, saying that it violated the rights of freedom of speech and the press. Malacañang denied these claims, saying Rappler violated constitutional rules and that it has nothing to do with President Rodrigo Duterte’s criticism of the outlet.

This said rule regarding the ban on foreign ownership of media companies has been in place since the 1970s. It can be recalled that GMA Network owner Robert ‘Uncle Bob’ Stewart sold the company to Felipe Gozon, Gilberto Duavit and Menardo Jimenez due to said rule, and MPB Primedia was also forced to sell its share of TV5 to Manny V. Pangilinan.

Despite its revocation, Rappler said it will continue to operate and will exhaust all legal efforts in order to reconsider SEC’s decision. Good luck with that.

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Epic Fail: GMA Airs Teleseryes on SONA Day

It was mostly memorable State of the Nation Address for President Rodrigo Duterte.

The speech lasted a better part of two hours, nearly half of which deviated from the original script and contained some profanity. Most major and minor Philippine television and radio networks went all out to deliver the most comprehensive wall-to-wall coverage of the SONA.

Unfortunately, there is one network that failed to take the SONA seriously. Enter GMA Channel 7.

While most networks were busy dealing with Duterte’s State of the Nation Address, GMA simply stood pat and did virtually nothing. From 2:30 to 4:15 p.m., they aired afternoon teleseryes ‘Ika-6 na Utos’, ‘Impostora’ and ‘Haplos’ on the day of the SONA, an uncharacteristic deviation from more recent years.

Consequentially, when the time to air the actual SONA arrived, ‘Haplos’ was cut short 15 minutes in. After that, Pia Arcangel, not Mike Enriquez, Mel Tiangco and Vicky Morales, was at the scene to present a somewhat brief pre-speech and post-speech report of the SONA.

If that is not enough for Felipe Gozon and company, it was sister station GMA News TV that actually picked up the slack. Channel 11’s coverage, which was anchored by Jessica Soho and Arnold Clavio, was a redemption of sorts for the network after their inability to air an extensive coverage of the SONA the past two years.

Overall, GMA’s decision to air teleseryes on SONA day came back to haunt them. The network’s programming organizers underestimated the SONA’s unpredictable nature, as evidenced by the fact that the SONA ended well before 6:30 p.m.

As a result of the SONA’s lengthy duration, Monday’s episode of ‘Haplos’ was left unfinished, and it remains to be seen if GMA will reair that very episode in full later today. Had they become aware of its unpredictability, they could have preempted all of their afternoon teleseryes and devote themselves to the SONA instead of leaving one of them incomplete.

In the end, GMA’s latest gaffe should be a harsh lesson for everyone involved. One can only hope that they will learn from this mistake and do the right thing come the 2018 State of the Nation Address.

Otherwise, expect more of the same jokes from critics and haters alike. That said, good luck GMA in correcting this failure.

PTV-4’s PFL Coverage in Hot Water

The PFL’s live matches are currently aired on PTV-4, but speaking engagements of President Rodrigo Duterte have often interrupted their coverage. (Logo courtesy of the Philippines Football League)

There is trouble brewing in the Philippines Football League.

The first season of the fledgling soccer league is currently broadcast on government-owned People’s Television Network (PTV-4), but so far, soccer fans were not happy with the network’s treatment of the matches. In more than one instance, live broadcasts of the PFL were rudely interrupted by President Rodrigo Duterte’s speeches to the nation.

As the only government television station, it is always mandatory for PTV-4 to broadcast each and every live appearance of the president. But if it takes place in the middle of a sports event such as the PFL, fans have every right to complain and voice their disapproval to the network.

 

The PFL is a young and promising league, and television coverage is a must for them to gain further awareness from not only the growing soccer community, but also the general public. But with the way that PTV-4 has treated them, there is a possibility that their relationship could end after only a season together.

If PTV-4 were smart enough to realize the advancements in technology, they should have provided the PFL with a free live stream platform so that the matches can continue online with no interruptions. Unfortunately, the network is still on a rebuilding phase as they focus on the improvement of current facilities and nationwide reach.

So where will the PFL go to? There are plenty of options, but there are some pros and cons.

ABS-CBN Sports has had a history of raising the profile of some of the sporting events they broadcast, but with their commitments already too loaded, there may be no room for the PFL to showcase their matches. Sports5, whose previous soccer experience is with the defunct United Football League (UFL), is also an option, but their reach is questionable.

Solar Sports is also a possibility, but their pullout from media giant SkyCable as well as Solar Entertainment’s financial troubles may also come to play. There is also Fox Sports Philippines with three different channels to choose from, but fitting in may be an issue.

As for GMA, don’t think about that anytime soon because Felipe Gozon and company have no interest in returning to the sporting arena full-time. If all else fails, they can stick around with PTV-4, as long as the network improves its approach.

The PFL has a long way to go before becoming the legitimate national soccer league in the Philippines. But to do so, they need the benefit of television to boost their morale, and so far the start has been anything but impressive.

GMA Is NOT The True No. 1 Station As Rasonable and Cruz Claim

The braintrust running GMA are at it again.

In an article published by the network last week, GMA executives Lilybeth Rasonable and Angela Cruz claimed that GMA is the No. 1 network and that AGB Nielsen is the more trusted ratings provider, based on the 77% mark that the network attained in the latest NUTAM and Urban Luzon ratings. While that was a good reason to cheer, ratings is not the only measuring stick towards becoming a top network.

As harsh as it sounds, GMA is nowhere close to what ABS-CBN has done. For several years, GMA is plagued by a variety of issues, most which have been thoroughly discussed to on this blog.

To summarize, here are the concerns that have frustrated the Kapuso network.

Lack of Quality Talents

Talents, in this case, are the actors and hosts of various GMA programs. This is already self-explanatory, as Rasonable has had trouble overseeing the development and utilization of GMA’s roster of talents.

Labor Woes

Following the concerns that its employees were illegally dismissed, the National Labor Relations Commission has no choice but to force GMA to pay sums of money to them. The well-documented struggle of TAG (Talents Associated with GMA) only added to GMA’s poor reputation, and the NLRC’s decision serves to give them justice.

Streamlining of Operations

Despite GMA’s claims of over P2 billion in revenue, cash within the network remains few and far between. Right now, GMA is streamlining its operations, which started by closing most of their regional operations.

Unwise Usage of Funds

The shortage of cash only got worse when GMA began to produce a new installment of ‘Encantadia’. They would have been smart enough by saving some of the money for more important things, such as HD, digital broadcasts, and the improvement of the much-maligned GMA News TV.

A New Investor

CEO Felipe Gozon has already expressed his intention to sell some of his shares to prospective investors. However, the GMA executive should have done this a long time ago, and considering the ongoing issues that GMA faced, that may be too late to resuscitate the network.

These are just some of the concerns that plague GMA in recent years. Overall, despite the so-called proclamation that GMA is the true No. 1 network, they can never be the real No. 1 unless they fix these long-standing issues.

That said, the onus is on Rasonable and other executives to justify GMA’s No. 1 billing through a network-wide rebuilding program. Because as it stands, GMA is not even close to fit the bill as the Philippines’ best network.

TVplus Sells 2 Million Units, Plus GMA Continues DTT Preparations

A cheaper price tag of P1499 and the expansion to other key areas in the country helped ABS-CBN TVplus reach the two million mark. (Photo credit: ABS-CBN)

The ABS-CBN TVplus black box continues to sell like pancakes.

Parent company ABS-CBN recently announced that the sale of the TVplus box has reached two million units, thus surpassing its year-end target. The swift rise in sales was helped by the product’s cheaper price tag of P1499 (originally P2500, then P1999), as well as national expansion to key regions in the country.

ABS-CBN CEO and president Carlo Katigbak shared his enthusiasm for the TVplus box. According to Katigbak,

ABS-CBN TVplus continues to improve the Filipino’s viewing experience though digital quality broadcast and a transformative entertainment experience by offering more choices of channels and even opportunities to watch special TV events, greatly supporting our mission to serve the Filipino people.

Launched in February 2015, ABS-CBN TVplus carries a select number of major free TV networks, including ABS-CBN and S+A. It also carries ABS-CBN’s exclusive digital channels Yey!, CineMo, Knowledge Channel, and DZMM TeleRadyo, as well as pay-per-view channel Kapamilya Box Office (KBO).

Meanwhile, rival network GMA continues its planned transition to digital television. The network revealed that it plans to invest P416 million on transmitter facilities to aid in the migration process.

Previously, GMA announced its plan to invest P1.5 billion on digital equipment, which was lower than the P3 billion that ABS-CBN spends for its own digital migration. GMA also unveiled a prototype of its upcoming digital television product, which is expected to combine the capabilities of a digital receiver and a set-top box.

While ABS-CBN continues to make strides in the development of its digital television arm, it is clear that GMA is taking things slow. Considering that the Kapuso network has had a history of questionable investments and a poor management reputation, Felipe Gozon’s ‘conservative’ approach may be the hopeful solution for now.

Still, with the target towards shutdown of analog broadcasts in 2019 within reach, GMA may not have enough time to deal with the impending migration. Sooner or later, the Kapuso network must act now, otherwise every household may end up with an ABS-CBN TVplus box, leaving GMA with little room to grow.

Revisiting GMA’s Iconic Rainbow Logo

It has been over 26 years since the rainbow became the symbol of GMA Network.

Nowadays, the rainbow motif is seen on GMA’s current ‘Kapuso’ logo, which was unveiled in 2002. However, as the network struggles to keep up with ABS-CBN’s superior programming, perhaps a revisit to the original rainbow logo will remember many of the network’s good times.

The rainbow made its debut in 1990, while still using the 1979 version of the GMA Radio Television Arts logo. By that point, the ‘Tower of Power’ in the network’s Timog headquarters helped GMA reach into a larger audience, but bigger plans lay ahead.

Just in time for GMA’s 42nd corporate anniversary in 1992, the network unveiled what is now known as the ‘Rainbow Satellite’ logo. The era saw GMA expand its operations by constructing regional relay stations across the country (later known as GMA Regional Network Group), and it also began to broadcast in other international countries (later known as GMA Pinoy TV).

For its 45th anniversary in 1995, GMA simplified the ‘Rainbow Satellite’ logo by removing the corporate slogan ‘Where You Belong’ along with the ‘Rainbow Satellite’ marking. The era saw GMA unveil a UHF channel in Citynet 27, while expanding into film production via what is now GMA Films.

The final version of the original ‘Rainbow Satellite’ logo was unveiled in 1998, sans the satellite that capped the rainbow. The logo was the first to adorn the newly-built GMA Network Center, which was opened in time for GMA’s 50th anniversary in 2000, as well as the last to use the ‘Where You Belong’ slogan.

In order to aggressively compete with ABS-CBN, GMA unveiled its current ‘Kapuso’ logo in 2002, with the heart adorned in rainbow accents. Though GMA found early success with the new look thanks to popular fantaseryes such as ‘Mulawin’ and the original ‘Encantadia’, financial difficulties prevented the network from gaining further ground.

Indeed, it is those financial difficulties which continue to haunt GMA to this day. It’s a shame, because even though they have tried their best to equal ABS-CBN’s diverse ventures, GMA still falls short, and for CEO Felipe Gozon, that is not a good thing.

Perhaps a return to a modified version of the ‘Rainbow Satellite’ logo along with an alternative set of programs could change everything. Still, it will be a huge challenge for GMA to even become at par with ABS-CBN, which is not easy.