ABS-CBN, GMA clash over TV ratings anew

MANILA, Philippines — Media and entertainment firm ABS-CBN Corp. claimed it remained the preferred television (TV) network nationwide in May, while rival GMA Network Inc. said it was the top choice of urban households.

In a statement yesterday, ABS-CBN said it got a 45 percent audience share in May, higher than GMA’s 32 percent based on data from multinational audience measurement provider Kantar Media.

Kantar Media’s data is based on 2,610 urban and rural homes to represent the Philippine TV viewing population.

GMA, meanwhile, said it had a total day people audience share of 39.8 percent in May compared to ABS-CBN’s 38.3 percent based on Nielsen TV Audience Measurement’s National Urban Television Audience Measurement.

GMA said Nielsen’s data covers approximately 900 more homes than Kantar Media’s survey.

While ABS-CBN said it was the leader in all areas of the country, GMA said it was number one in Urban Luzon and Mega Manila, which respectively account for 72 and 59 percent of all urban viewers in the country.

ABS-CBN said it got a 41 percent audience share in Metro Manila against GMA’s 26 percent, and had a 36 percent share in Mega Manila compared to GMA’s 34 percent.

ABS-CBN also stayed ahead of competition in Luzon where it got 41 percent against GMA’s 35 percent, in Visayas where it had 54 percent compared to GMA’s 25 percent, and in Mindanao where it accounted for 52 percent versus GMA’s 30 percent.

In Urban Luzon, GMA said it had an audience share of 44.4 percent against ABS-CBN’s 33 percent, while it had a 45.8 percent share compared to ABS-CBN’s 30.4 percent in Mega Manila.

ABS-CBN said it was likewise the winner across all time blocks.

The Kapamilya network continued to dominate the primetime block (6 p.m. to 12 midnight), through a 49 percent audience share, higher than GMA’s 32 percent.

“The primetime block is the most important part of the day when most Filipinos watch TV and advertisers put a larger chunk of their investment to reach more consumers effectively,” ABS-CBN said.

ABS-CBN said it was the winner in the morning block (6 a.m. to 12 noon) where it had a 36 percent share versus GMA’s 31 percent, in the noontime block (12 noon to 3 p.m.) through a 47 percent share compared to GMA’s 32 percent and in the afternoon block (3 p.m. to 6 p.m.), with a 45 percent share against GMA’s 37 percent.