GMA 7, nakabayad ng utang nang mag-no. 1 sa rating

Umabot sa P25 million ang ginastos ng GMA 7 nang dumayo ang Kapuso Network sa Davao last weekend. Pero sulit naman dahil kagulo talaga ang Davaoeño sa pagdating ng Kapuso stars sa kanilang lugar.

Believe it or not, pero ganoon kalaki ang budget para sa kanilang kampanya na mag-no. 1 ang GMA 7 sa apat na sulok ng Pilipinas after nilang makopo ang no. 1 slot sa Mega Manila.

Isa sa mga lugar na inuna nila ang Davao dahil bukod sa weekend events (kung saan dinala ang malalaki nilang artista para sa live telecast ng SOP and SOP Gigsters at Serbisyong Totoo ng mga programs ng News and Current Affairs na ginanap sa SM Davao Grounds), plano ng GMA mag-expand sa nasabing lugar. "GMA Davao will also be equipped with new digital cameras for news gathering and entertainment. We are also building a new studio complex for Davao," sabi ni Mr. Felipe Gozon, Chairman, President and CEO ng GMA sa isang presscon na ginanap sa Marco Polo Hotel Ballroom in Davao last weekend.

Nabanggit din ni Mr. Gozon sa nasabing presscon na dahil sa kanilang financial success nang mag-no. 1 sila sa Mega Manila, marami silang mga expansion projects na gagawin hindi lang sa Davao although priority nila ngayon ang nasabing siyudad. "We have commissioned the new 30 kilowatt Solid State Harris Transmitter and a new antenna system for Davao. With the new transmitter and antenna, GMA TV-5 in Davao now covers 5,000 square kilometers of land area or a total of 276,000 TV households," he said.

"After we have succeeded in taking the No. 1 position in TV ratings in Mega Manila since December 2003, we are hoping that we can duplicate our success in key cities across the country, including Davao City. We are optimistic that we can achieve our goal because we believe that Filipinos, wherever they may be, basically have the same taste when it comes to news and entertainment. We believe that if we can increase the awareness of the Dabawenyos regarding our top-rating programs in Mega Manila most of our Kapusong Dabawenyo will likewise watch our programs," sabi ni Mr. Gozon.

Sa nasabi ring presscon ibinigay ni Mr. Gozon ang details na matagal nang pinag-uusapang launching ng kanilang pangalawang VHF channel, ang QTV (Quality TV) na ang target audience ay kababaihan.

Magsisimula itong mapanood sa November 11 (11/11). "The channel will showcase purely wholesome entertainment, and credible news and information. We are the only Network in the country that has two VHF TV platforms. For our QTV in Davao, we have a 40 kilowatt transmitter and a new antenna system that will become operational in time for the airing of QTV here. We have also built a new transmitter building in Davao. These facilities cost about P50 million," paliwanag ni Mr. Gozon.

Pawang mga artista ng GMA ang mapapanood sa QTV.

Nabanggit din niya na ang sa mga pelikulang ginawa ng GMA Films, pinataob ng Let The Love Begin starring Richard Gutierrez and Angel Locsin ang epic movie ni Cesar Montano na Jose Rizal.

Nagpa-plano rin daw silang mag-produce ng at least four films next year.

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Ang lead pala nila in terms of ratings ay lalong tumaas sa Mega Manila last September. "Based on AGB data, our total day Mega Manila rating for September stood at 19.5 percent, 5.4 points higher than our rival. Our lead in September was higher than our 5.1 point lead in August and our 4.5 point advantage last July," paliwanag ni Mr. Gozon sa mga nag-attend na local and national media sa Davao.

Sixteen pala sa overall top twenty programs sa third quarter ng 2005 ay programa ng GMA. At 12 sa GMA programs ay nasa top fifteen daytime programs list at 14 sa top 15 evening programs ay sa kanila. Pito rin sa seven GMA shows ang nasa list ng top ten late night programs. Hinakot din umano nila ang list of top programs by genre.

"We continue to succeed in ratings despite the anomalous cable ratings of some of our rival’s programs. To date, some of their selected programs continue to post higher cable ratings than non-cable ratings, which is simply incredible, considering that cabled TV sets are only about 24% of total TV sets.

"As of September, our total commercial minutes was 15,500 minutes higher than our competitor. This is the continuous effect of having more cost-efficient programs," dagdag na paliwanag ng presidente ng GMA na isang abogado.

Dahil sa mataas nilang rating, tumaas din ang kita ng kanilang kumpanya (all time high net income). Kumita sila ng net income na P1.5 billion last year, doble sa profit ng kanilang kalabang network sa nasabing taon. "Last February, we were able to prepay our long term debt of P1.9 billion, making our company long term debt free several months ahead of schedule. As of August this year, we have already surpassed our net income in 2004. We are once again confident that we will surpass the financial targets we have set for this year."

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Bukod sa pagpapalakas ng kanilang channel, puspusan din ang pagpapalakas ng kanilang international channel, ng kanilang recording arm and radio stations.

"We have launched our International Channel called GMA Pinoy TV in Japan, Guam, San Francisco in the U.S., and in Malaysia. Since the launch of our International Channel, in San Francisco, USA last July 23, our cable carrier Comcast has reported record-breaking achievements for GMA Pinoy TV. Comcast reported that in the first month since launching GMA Pinoy TV on August 1, Comcast Northern California has experienced the highest call volume– and generated more customer sales– than in the first 30-days of launching in the U.S. of any other international channel to date."

Present din sa nasabing presscon si Mr. Gilberto Duavit Jr., Executive Vice President and COO.

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Salve V. Asis’ e-mail - [email protected]