FTT Year 2016 in Review: The 20 Stories That Define the Year in Media (Part III)

Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2017, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio. This article looks back at the 20 moments that define the Philippine media this year.

If you missed out on Part I and Part II of this series, click on the highlighted link for more information.

Here is Part III of the four-part series. These stories are arranged in no particular order.

Pinoy Boyband Superstar Answers To the Top

Last year, GMA created its own reality talent show for up-and-coming Filipino boybands, ‘To the Top’. This year, ABS-CBN struck back by bringing the ‘La Banda’ franchise to the Philippines under the name ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’.

Unfortunately for GMA, the popularity of ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’ far exceeded ‘To the Top’. The former constantly gained ratings of 30% or better while airing at a more convenient timeslot of 6:50 p.m., whereas the latter only mustered around 7-8% ratings while airing at a not-so attractive timeslot of 9:45-10:00 p.m.

Despite the success of ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’, it remains to be seen if BoybandPH can become a more popular boyband than Top One Project ever was. That said, the key to both boybands at this point is to outsell each other in order to win the hearts of fans.

Delamar Leaves RX 93.1’s The Morning Rush

‘The Morning Rush’ on Monster RX 93.1 is an institution in Philippine FM radio, having aired continuously for over two decades. So when Delamar Arias decided to leave both the show and the station on July 29, listeners, or ‘rushers’, were stunned.

After all, Delamar, along with long-time partner Chico Garcia and recent addition Gino Quillamor, were instrumental in the show’s success, with the ‘Top 10’ segment becoming the most popular segment. Her departure left a glaring hole on ‘The Morning Rush’, one they have struggled to fill since.

Delamar was not the only high-profile departure from the station. A few weeks later, Bea Fabregas left RX to focus on hosting FOX Sports Philippines’ ‘Fox Sports Minute’ and ‘The GOAT’, while Karen Bordador was arrested for alleged drug possession and was de facto removed from the station.

The Launch of PBA Rush, Plus UFC on TV5 and Olympic Coverage

If Solar Entertainment has NBA Premium TV, then TV5 has its own channel for the PBA in PBA Rush. Launched prior to the 2016 Governors’ Cup, PBA Rush is considered the Filipino version of NBA TV, featuring live and archived PBA games plus special programs dedicated to the league.

The timing of PBA Rush’s launch couldn’t have come at an important time, as that year’s Governors’ Cup saw Barangay Ginebra San Miguel end an eight-year title drought at the expense of the Meralco Bolts. Ginebra’s win would have concluded PBA’s run with TV5, but instead the partnership between the two was renewed in time for the ongoing Philippine Cup.

TV5 also made a high-profile acquisition when it purchased the broadcast rights to the UFC, promising it to air live on its HYPER channel. Unfortunately, TV5’s coverage of the 2016 Rio Olympics was a difficult one, as the network struggles to deal with its decline in programming quality.

Other Sports Stories on TV

ABS-CBN Sports replaced the UFC by focusing on local and regional mixed martial arts, namely the Alvin Aguilar-led URCC, and the Southeast Asia-based One Championship. They also brought in the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) as part of its continued commitment to local and regional sports.

Solar Sports dabbled into collegiate basketball by airing the NAASCU, while IBC-13 and AksyonTV aired the UCBL and CESAFI tournaments respectively. However, the biggest draws remain the NCAA and the UAAP, where the San Beda Red Lions and the De La Salle Green Archers won their respective championships.

Finally, in women’s volleyball, ABS-CBN Sports acquired the rights to the Shakey’s V-League, beginning a contentious rivalry between the V-League and the TV5-aired Philippine SuperLiga.

Be My Lady Reigns, Ryzza Mae’s Run Ends

‘Be My Lady’, topbilled by real-life couple Erich Gonzales and Daniel Matsunaga,was the top draw at the pre-noontime slot for much of this year. Airing for 221 episodes from January 18 to November 25, the series earned ratings of nearly 20%, besting the competition in the process.

The aforementioned competition included a pair of shows starring Ryzza Mae Dizon: ‘Princess in the Palace’, and ‘Calle Siete’. But with Ryzza already entering the pre-teen stage of her life, it was clear that she was no longer the charmingly cute presence of years past.

In the end, TAPE decided to cease starring her on the pre-noontime slot beginning October 24, and gave the BAES (along with Taki Sato) of ‘Eat Bulaga’ a lead role in ‘TROPS’.

Part IV of this four-part series is coming up tomorrow. Stay tuned.

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Pinoy Boyband Superstar Premieres Tomorrow

ABS-CBN’s own search for an up-and-coming Filipino boyband gets underway tomorrow.

Boys aged 14 or older, with a knack for good looks, charm and excellent singing and dancing talent, will have the opportunity to become one of the five members of a soon-to-be named boyband. Their journey begins this weekend on ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’, the Filipino adaptation of ‘La Banda’.

The original ‘La Banda’ was created by Simon Cowell and former Menudo member Ricky Martin. In order to avoid claims that the show is actually creating a ‘band’ consisting of a vocalist and instrumentalists, ABS-CBN renamed the show as ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’ in order to make it clear that they are looking to form a boyband.

The premise of ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’ is simple. The boyband aspirants must impress the girls with their looks and talent in order to make it to the next round, after which they face the judges who will evaluate their singing prowess as well as their image.

If one of the aspirants failed to pass the first round, they may be given another chance, provided they show enough potential to convince judges. Eventually, some of the aspirants will be eliminated until there are five left standing.

‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’ will be hosted by Billy Crawford. The show’s judges will be Yeng Constantino, Vice Ganda, Aga Muhlach, and Sandara Park.

Even before its premiere, comparisons between ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’ and rival GMA’s ‘To the Top’ were very evident from the beginning. Both had a similar premise of forming a boyband, not to mention the journey of selecting the members.

The difference, however, lies on the production. Though ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’ is more of a franchise than the originally created ‘To the Top’, ABS-CBN did not seek help from its news and current affairs department to produce the former, unlike GMA whose Public Affairs team was responsible for the latter.

And considering that ‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’ will be aired at a more convenient timeslot (unlike ‘To the Top’ which aired on late nights), the former could become even more successful. Still, it will be up to the audience to see how it all happens.

The journey of the next great Pinoy boyband begins this weekend. Good luck.

‘Pinoy Boyband Superstar’ airs Saturdays after ‘Home Sweetie Home’, and Sundays after ‘Goin’ Bulilit’.

La Banda: ABS-CBN’s Answer to To the Top

‘To the Top’, you’ve got company.

Just recently, ABS-CBN announced audition dates for the upcoming boyband search show ‘La Banda’. The auditions will take place on the following dates:

• June 10: Robinsons Place Pangasinan
• June 11-12: Starmall San Jose del Monte Bulacan
• June 15-16: Centrio Mall Cagayan de Oro
• June 17-18: KCC Mall Zamboanga
• June 18-19: Starmall Alabang
• June 22: KCC Mall General Santos
• June 24-25: Pacific Mall Legazpi

The auditions will begin at 7:00 a.m. Boys aged 14-25 years old and with the ability to both dance and sing are welcome in this competition.

The latest international franchise acquired by ABS-CBN, ‘La Banda’ was created by Simon Cowell and was produced by Univision. The original show, which emphasized on the formation of a Latin American boyband, was aired on Univision in late 2015.

However, this is not the first time that a boyband talent search show will air on Philippine television. Nearly a year ago, GMA did the same thing when they produced ‘To the Top’ in conjunction with GMA Public Affairs.

Unlike GMA, however, ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs will have no involvement in the making of ‘La Banda’. Considering how poorly-received ‘To the Top’ was when it aired, it was only appropriate for ABS-CBN to let the ever-strong entertainment group do the talking rather than share the blame with its news department.

Over the next several weeks, ABS-CBN will have the responsibility of picking the best young boys who will have what it takes to be in a boyband. In the meantime, wait for further updates regarding the hosts and judges of ‘La Banda’.

‘La Banda: the Making of the Pinoy Boyband’ is expected to premiere during the third quarter of this year. Date and time will be determined soon.

For more information on the auditions, go to ABS-CBN’s official website or on their social media accounts for details.