MANILA, Philippines — Broadcast giant GMA Network Inc. is undaunted by competition, which includes the return of shows from rival ABS-CBN on free-to-air television, its top executive said.
GMA Network chairman and CEO Felipe Gozon said the company looks to continue asserting its dominance in the free TV space through sustained expansion and innovation.
“I have to put our modesty aside. I have to say that even before the ABS-CBN shutdown, GMA was already the number one free TV station in the Philippines, and after ABS-CBN was shutdown, we continued to improve our reach and content in all aspects,” Gozon said.
“And so we feel that we remain ready for the competition as before,” he said.
GMA benefitted tremendously from the closure of its biggest rival, ABS-CBN, last year.
GMA said it reached 97 percent of total TV households in the country with an estimated 82 million viewers nationwide based on January to September 2021 data from Nielsen Philippines.
GMA-7’s reach is further complemented by second free-to-air channel GTV, along with digital channels Heart of Asia, Hallypop, and I Heart Movies, which can be accessed using digital TV receivers.
The company’s financial results have also clearly benefited from the absence of ABS-CBN, with profits soaring by 54 percent in the nine months ending September due to higher revenues and managed costs.
Some advertisers shifted to GMA when ABS-CBN went off-air starting May last year following the expiration of its franchise and its eventual non-renewal.
ABS-CBN was able to strike a deal with Zoe Broadcasting in October last year, enabling some of its shows to return to free TV through A2Z Channel 11.
More ABS-CBN shows made their come back to free TV in January through TV5 following the Lopez-led firm’s collaboration with Cignal TV, TV5, and Brightlight Productions.
Gozon, however, earlier said ABS-CBN’s partnerships with TV5 and Zoe Broadcasting Network Inc. of Eddie Villanueva have not really adversely affected GMA’s ratings and revenues.
To remain number one, Gozon said GMA would continue to produce world class quality content, invest heavily in talent management and development, and build more digital stations nationwide so more Filipinos can enjoy digital TV viewing.
“We have to continue to pursue new platforms and partnerships to deliver content to more Filipinos abroad,” he said.