The network battle for leadership is like the pervading mood in the country’s political arena in which the opposition of various persuasions are hopelessly trying to pull President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo down who remains unscathed by threats of protests, impeachment, and unrelenting criticism of her administration.
It can be said of ABS-CBN, which for the last two decades have remained the country’s biggest and leader in the broadcast industry.
Recently, it lost ground in the Mega Manila and Urban Luzon areas, yet it continues to uphold its leadership in the national TV ratings with an overall audience share of 44 percent or 8 percentage points higher than GMA’s 36 percent, based on the data from global research specialist Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) for the period of March 1 to 31, 2009.
The Kapuso network, by the way, swears by the data being provided by AGB Nielsen, which had serviced both broadcast and advertising industries longer than TNS.
Vivian Tin, head of ABS-CBN Research and Business Analysis, said the network’s programs, as per figures in the TNS survey, dominate the primetime block, clinching seven out of the top 10 slots with May Bukas Pa (39.1percent), I Love Betty La Fea (37.5 percent), and Tayong Dalawa (36.2 percent) leading in March 2009.
She said Tayong Dalawa is doing very well that the number of applicants to enter the Philippine Military Academy has become “phenomenal,” while I Love Betty La Fea continues to inspire people.
TV Patrol World (31.9 percent) continues to be the country’s leading TV news program, while Maalaala Mo Kaya? (32.6 percent) and Rated K (30.6 percent) have been performing strongly on weekends. Wowowee (22.0 percent) is the only noontime program that made it to the Top 20.
ABS-CBN continues to register very strong performances in Northern and Southern Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.
The network’s ratings in Metro Manila has been on a fast roller-coaster ride, but still failed to stabilize its bid for an upset victory over Kapuso. Meanwhile its ratings in the suburbs and Central Luzon have remarkably improved due to the ongoing retrofitting of the network’s tower and the introduction of UHF channels in provinces like Bulacan and Pampanga.
“We are increasing our tower height in Metro Manila, which will allow us to have further propagation in signal, and changing our antenna type. We expect improvements in reception in suburbs starting mid-year,” she said. “In Central Luzon, we have set up UHF channels so viewers can watch our programs and this has addressed the problem.”
In terms of socioeconomic class, the TNS data shows ABS-CBN continues to be the choice of empowered consumers. It is leading in 85 percent of the total Philippine households or those belonging to classes AB, C, and D. It is also leading in 70 percent of the country’s areas.
TNS is currently the world’s and the Philippines’ leading customized market research company. It is the dominant TV ratings provider in China and offers the same service in Singapore, Korea, Hong Kong, and other parts of the world. It recently bagged a prestigious TV ratings contract in the UK, edging out rival AGB-Nielsen.
Now, the battle strategy is nearly like the one launched by Mao-Tse Tung when the Chinese Communist Party drove the Koumintangs out of the mainland. If you remember Asian history, the call was “From the countryside to the city.” That’s the Kapamilya way these days.
