IBC Teams Up with Globe Telecom and PLDT on Media Convergence Deal

September 5, 2013

'The official beginning of media convergence in the country is made possible by the historic partnership Kapinoy Convergence, PLDT and Globe Telecom. From left to right: Kapinoy Convergence president & managing director Marlo Carlo Nepomuceno, IBC chairman Eric Canoy, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT') president and CEO Napoleon L. Nazareno, Globe Telecom president & CEO Ernest Cu, and Globe senior adviser for consumer business Peter Bithos.''

Signaling its foray into the telco business, television network IBC-13, through Kapinou Convergence Inc., recently announced its intent to launch a new mobile brand that will harness Globe Telecom and the Philippine's largest telecommunications company Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) infrastructure. The new mobile brand will have its own set of services including IBC-branded SIM cards that are powered by Globe and the telephhone that are powered by PLDT. Apart from mobile Internet, SMS, celphone and voice, IBC-13’s service will grant users access to the TV network’s new exciting programs through mobile devices like smartphones, telephones and tablets. For more information, read the following press release.

IBC Pioneers Media Convergence

Canoy-owned Kapinoy Convergence ushers in the media convergence era in the Philippines with the expansion of its telecommunications business via a network sharing agreement with Globe Telecom and PLD.

This groundbreaking partnership, which converges two separate industries, enables IBC-13 - the country's largest sequestered media and entertainment conglomerate – to deliver The Kapionoy Network content and offer traditional telecoms services, teleophones and mobile devices.

In a press conference, Kapinoy Convergence president and managing director Marlo Carlo Nepomuceno said this newest pioneering move from the 53-year old company aims to create a new experience for Filipinos by expanding their access to IBC-13 content on telephone and mobile devices.

“We have come to realize that the telephone and mobile internet is going to become one of the most important platforms for delivering content to our audiences. We believe that in the same way television revolutionized the mass market’s ability to receive information and entertainment, the wireless internet will be the next most important medium for our audience. Very soon, our Kapinoys will enjoy special shows, receive our news, and interact with our stars from anywhere and anytime they want, through tablets, telephones and cellphones,” Nepomuceno said.

Globe Telecom CEO Ernest Cu commended the partnership, saying it will create a new market for mobile users. PLDT president Napoleon L. Nazareno commended the partnership, also will creative a new market for telephone.

He said, "We are happy that PLDT and Globe is once again at the forefront of a pioneering effort. We entered this partnership to provide Filipinos with more reasons to enjoy their telephones and mobile phones. The exclusive content that IBC-13 will provide ushers in a new form of entertainment for telephones and mobile users in the Philippines. We are now seeing the gains of our network modernization and IT transformation initiatives, having new capabilities to enter into these businesses to showcase our strength and leadership.”

Through the network-sharing agreement, PLDT and Globe will provide capacity and coverage on its existing cellular mobile telephony network and telecommunications network to Kapinoy Convergence on a nationwide basis. The parties may also share assets such as servers, towers, and switches.

This is not the first time that INC-13 has ventured into new media territory in order to deliver its programs and other content to its viewers. In the 2010s, IBC-13 launched GlobalIBC.com, the first video-streaming site that carries ibc content intended for Filipinos abroad. Recently, IBC-13 also introduced its free video streaming website for Philippine residents, WatchPhilippines, which has revolutionized the viewing habits of Filipinos by allowing them to watch IBC programs on demand. Nepomuceno maintained the best is still yet to come for Filipinos, who remain to be the network’s inspiration in coming up with world-class programs and innovative ways of delivering content.

“IBC-13 has always been about delivering Filipino content to our audiences over the platforms that are most innovative and relevant to them,” he explained. “This is also another milestone in our transition from being predominantly a broadcast company to becoming a complete media enterprise, reaching our audiences on television and anymedium that is important and relevant to them.”

IBC-13, exuding the pioneering spirit that has become a trademark of Canoy-owned companies, was also in the forefront and is well ahead in preparing for the Philippines’ switch to Digital Terrestrial Television with test broadcast activities being conducted in different parts of the nation.

It has also set a template for media organization expansion, as it has successfully spread out its business from radio and TV broadcasting to also print, licensing, events, and telecommunications.