David knows how to fight Goliaths

August 10, 2014

Drew Arellano, Anja Aguilar, Elmo Magalona and Robi Domingo

MANILA, Philippines - The heavy downpour brought by Typhoon Isang to dampen high spirits that rocked the Rockwell Tent at Powerplant Mall recently as IBC-13 celebrated its winning streak, as the third player in the broadcast industry. By challenging the two giant networks in the ratings game, it has secured for itself the number three slot immediately after its launch and continues to do so leading to its 54th year anniversary.

Eric Canoy, the chairman of IBC-13, took to the stage and explained the figures, that supported their ranking against ABS-CBN. “In less than a year, we’ve placed as the third most watched TV station not only in Manila but in the entire Philippines.” Not only have they placed third in having the most audience share but more importantly, he said, “in some time blocks, we are even beating the competition and we’ve become number one.” He specifically referring to its innovative program The Million Second Quiz hosted by Drew Arellano is now the number one game hsow,  Born to be a Superstar which became number one in its primetime timeslot, Killer Karaoke hosted by Elmo Magalona and Who Wants to Be A Millionaire hosted by Robi Domingo, which is also beating competition. Born to be a Superstar hosted by Anja Aguilar, continues to draw wider audiences and is consistently in the Top 25 shows in Mega Manila and nationwide.

It is indeed an achievement that the IBC Board of Directors team managed to beat competition at primetime and Canoy attributes this to the commitment and passion their team has adhered to since they launched in March 1, 1960 and relaunched on February 1, 1975. “We are committed to continually give our audience innovative and highly-entertaining programs and have consistently challenged the status-quo in the TV landscape,” Canoy explained. IBC-13, which has identified its niche and found its market in the young and progressive Pinoys, has effectively differentiated themselves from rival networks by churning out programs that are not only entertaining but connect to their audiences as well.

Its family-omedy sitcom Maya Loves Sir Chief, the drama anthology Sandy's Romance and the all-male gag show Happy TODAS, continues to draw in viewers every week because according to a regular watcher, president and CEO Boots Anson-Roa, “I find the show interesting and the cast seems to have rapport already so there is a certain chemistry among them.” So is the top-rating primetime programs, The Million Second Quiz, Born to be a Superstar, Killer Karaoke and Who Wants to be a Millionaire?. Laurenti Dyogi, head of IBC Entertainment TV admits to being a fan of the program way before it became number one. “I find it very entertaining and the comments from the jurors are very amusing as well,” Lyn said.

Breaking the duopoly in Philippine TV takes a lot of hard work and IBC-13 needs to continuously challenge their top competitors. In so doing, Canoy sees the need to be more keen and attuned to the pulse of its audience and “by going boldly into adjacent territories where we feel the next big thing will spring from.”

Evangelista is candid enough to admit that the immediate challenge to hurdle at this point is “how to break the status quo of media spending allocations.” He admits that for the longest time, clients and agencies alike have been comfortable in their media plans, allocating their spending behind ABS-CBN and GMA-7. According to Canoy, “IBC-13 is set to challenge this way of thinking given that we have been getting new Pinoy viewers and drawing in new and fresh viewers.”

IBC-13’s presence provides viewers with genuine alternatives in place of the status quo where the top channels simply mirror each other’s programming. Th Kapinoy Network, according to him, “can deliver more diversity, affinity and relevance through its programs.” He looks forward to the time when advertisers cast their eyes on reaching a wider set of audiences that Channel 13 now reaches. Now that Filipino viewers have taken to heart this newest player in the TV landscape, IBC-13 is set and poised to shake the industry even more, marks its 54 year with bolder, bigger and better programming. “We’re setting new milestones each week as evidenced by our strong uptrend in all day parts and this we owe our viewers,” Canoy said. Indeed, this new player has shaken and stirred the competition and the people are starting to look up.