More on Kabayan

Last week, we wrote about growing speculations in the business sector about a reported major, major offer made by ABC 5 to veteran broadcaster and former vice president Noli “Kabayan” de Castro and an invitation to move over to the Manny Pangilinan-led network which is set to challenge the older players in the local television industry.

It was noted that the reported offer to De Castro is said to be “historic” since no Philippine broadcast industry personality has ever been given an offer of this magnitude and that such an offer would not be too far-fetched since Pangilinan, who has made an indelible mark in the local telecommunications, power and infrastructure sectors, is widely believed to have the financial wherewithal to back the offer to De Castro.

Many of our colleagues and readers, however, have expressed serious doubts that a De Castro-Pangilinan deal is in the bag.

There are views that it will be very difficult for De Castro to simply turn his back on his long-time network. The Lopez family-owned ABS CBN, no doubt, is responsible for giving De Castro the needed break and helped much in catapulting the former vice president to his current niche in Philippine broadcasting.

“Pinagsamahan”, they point out, may not be too easy to match. They have a point. De Castro has been with the Lopez network for decades. It would be difficult to detach his image from the network, and vice versa. And there are deep personal friendships involved, we are sure.

Our in-the-know colleagues in the media entertainment sections say the Lopez network has plans of its own for De Castro’s expanded presence in their television programming. It has been just about two months since he returned on the air after an eight-year absence to concentrate on his political duties, but ABS-CBN’s programming people are reportedly already planning some major changes that would capitalize on the value of De Castro’s public goodwill.

Some quarters, meanwhile, are saying that all these talk about De Castro joining ABC 5, or that big plans are being made by ABS-CBN for him are mere speculations, even wishful thinking, nothing more.

There are those who argue however that true or not true, a De Castro transfer to ABC 5 would open new horizons for the local television industry. It would change the business landscape of this sector and would alter the picture of advertising campaigns and revenues. That, of course, would also alter the public’s viewing habits.

They also say that the idea and prospect of a De Castro-Pangilinan partnership in local broadcasting makes for a lot of exciting possibilities.

Goods news for the country

The 7th annual National Outsourcing Association Awards took place recently, with the biggest names in outsourcing industry attending the glamorous central London ceremony.

According to Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) chief Ivan Uy, who graced the 2010 Bayan Business Executive Golf Exclusive (EGE) in Davao, the Philippines (Philippine Trade and Investment Center) bagged the offshoring destination of the year award, making it a three-peat for the country.

Other winners include BPO Contract of the Year, Mahindra Satyam BPO-GlaxoSmithKline; IT Outsourcing Project of the Year, Capgemini – Welsh European Funding Office; Financial Services Outsourcing Project of the Year, Capita – AXA; Public Sector Outsourcing Project of the Year, CSC – The Department of Health; Telecommunications, Utilities and High-Tech Outsourcing Project of the Year, Infosys; Offshoring Operation of the Year, Exigent; Outsourcing Professional of the Year Duncan Mackison, Serco; Outsourcing Service Provider of the Year, HCL Technologies; Outsourcing Contact Centre Provider of the Year, The Listening Company; Outsourcing Advisory of the Year, Olswang; Outsourcing End-User of the Year, HMRC; Award for Innovation in Outsourcing, CSC; Award for Best Practice in Outsourcing, Centrica; Award for Academic Achievement, Verity Billson – Capital One; Award for Corporate Social Responsibility, Firstsource; and Chairman’s Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Outsourcing Industry, National Rail Enquiries.

A study made by Everest Global and Outsource 2Philippines in conjunction with the Business Association of the Philippines (BPAP) and the CICT revealed that from $7.2 billion last year, the Philippine information technology-business process outsourcing (BPO) sectors is expected to grow to $9 billion this year. During the period 2006-2010, these sectors have accounted for four to five percent of gross domestic product and have been the largest private sector new job creator.

The IT-BPO industry has likewise evolved beyond its traditional areas of strength. While 74 percent of the $3.2 billion industry revenue in 2006 came from voice BPO, by 2010, this has gone down to 69 percent. On the other hand, the share of non-voice BPO and IT/ESO, which are considered as value-added, has gone up from 26 percent to 31 percent. Meanwhile, from an 81 percent share in 2006, the contribution of the US market has been reduced to 74 percent, especially with the development of new markets.

The global offshore services market, the study revealed, is growing at a healthy pace and will more than double by 2016, from $105-$125 billion this year to between $256 and $258 billion, adding that while voice and IT/ESO will continue to grow, it is non-voice BPO that will drive market growth.

This it said creates multiple opportunities to drive the next wave of growth for the Philippines.

The voice BPO sector is a maturing market, and the Philippines is undoubtedly a strong global leader with a 30 percent share of the US offshoring and outsourcing business and 15 to 20 percent of the UK/APAC. Non-voice BPO, on the other hand, offers large industry-specific opportunities such as those in banking, health care, media, and knowledge process outsourcing. While the Philippines has a share of around 10 percent of the global pie in this segment, the study noted that the country offers an effective alternative to India in several non-voice areas.

It said that growth opportunities for the Philippines include extending impact in the US across services; leveraging its credibility in healthcare, banking, telecom and media to drive rapid, non-voice growth; capturing select opportunities outside of the US; voice and non-voice in the UK; and IT/ESO and regional shares services for the Asia-Pacific region.

 The IT-BPO Road Map 2011-2016 study added that concerted industry effort and continued government support can get the sector to $20 billion by 2016, while strengthened private-public partnership can get this to $25 billion.

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