EXCLUSIVE: ABS-CBN'S TV & STUDIO PROFITS UP BY 39% TO P2.98 BILLION!

Contrary to universal belief, ABS-CBN's Studio and TV, (which excludes sky cable, ABS-CBNmobile, etc.) remains to be the money making segment of the ABS-CBN Group. The Broadcast group netted P2.98 billion in 2014, up by 39% year-on-year. Its other business segment which covers Sky Cable and other new businesses like ABS-CBNmobile netted a loss of P946 million, pullling down the combined net income of ABS-CBN to only Php2.03 billion in 2014.

GMA NETWORK DECLARES CASH DIVIDEND BIGGER THAN LAST YEARS' EARNINGS!

GMA Network Inc.’s board of directors yesterday approved the release of cash dividends totalling P1.215 billion at P0.25 per share.

In a statement, GMA said the cash dividends are payable on May 19, 2015 to shareholders on record as of April 24, 2015.  

The P1.215 billion dividends represent a payout ratio of 120 percent in relation to the company’s 2014 net income. Since its initial public offering in 2007, GMA has returned a total of P15.456 billion to its shareholders.

GMA NETWORK'S 2014 NET INCOME ONLY HALF OF ABS-CBN'S!

MANILA – GMA Network Inc. reported a 40 percent drop in its 2014 net income due to the absence of election-related advertisements.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange, the listed firm said its net income declined to P1.01 billion in 2014 from the P1.67 billion in 2013.

Gross revenues were down 7.8 percent to P11.94 billion in 2014 from P12.95 billion the previous year.

WILLIE SIGNS BLOCKTIME AGREEMENT WITH GMA NETWORK!

TV host Willie Revillame has already signed an airtime agreement with GMA Network today for his variety show on GMA7. News reports earlier indicated Revillame agreeing to buy airtime on GMA 7 for his entertainment show. The buzz cited the program will be aired in May this year and will occupy the 3:30 to 5:00 PM time slot every Sunday. It appears that the original plan to go against ASAP was put into shelf citing Willie's treasured friendship with Star Magic's head. 

However, unlike his deal with TV5, Revillame will receive no help from GMA in producing the show. The TV host alone will spend to produce the show and will also be paying Php 2 million to GMA for leasing its airtime every week. But of course, as with any blocktimer, Revillame will earn most of the airtime revenues and product placements for himself. GMA will still be monitoring the content, as they wish to avoid the fate of TV5 and ABS-CBN for receiving legal complaints from Willie's inappropriate TV hosting.

EXCLUDING ELECTION RELATED ITEMS, ABS-CBN REPORTS 42% JUMP IN PROFIT!

MANILA - Multimedia conglomerate ABS-CBN Corp. posted a net income of P2.030 billion in 2014, meeting its profit guidance of P2 billion.

ABS-CBN Corp. chief financial officer Aldrin Cerrado said last year's net income was slightly higher than 2013's P2.028 billion.

"We're happy to announce that we hit our profit guidance of P2 billion in terms of net income," Cerrado said at the ABS-CBN investors' briefing on Thursday.

Comparing last year's net income to 2013 without revenues from election-related advertising, the Lopez-led firm saw profit growth of 42 percent to P2.030 billion from P1.4 billion.

Excluding election-related spending, revenues went up 4.6 percent in 2014.

WILLIE'S SHOW IN GMA-7 TO BE PITTED AGAINST ASAP?

A source from GMA Network allegedly confirmed Willie Revillame's TV comeback! News circulated last year that Willie's pals Mike Enriquez and Joey De Leon are pushing for Revillame's show in GMA-7 utilizing the pre-primetime slot. However, this idea didn't seem fit for GMA's big bosses especially after the trouble Revillame brought to former employers ABS-CBN and TV5. 

MVP PLANS TO TAP MOBILE, LANDLINE, CABLE, POWER, WATER AND TOLLWAYS BUSINESSES TO HELP TV5 BREAK EVEN BY 2017!

MANILA - TV5 aims to break even by 2017, or eight years after the PLDT Group took over the broadcast firm.

"Well, EBITDA positive by 2017, hopefully," Manuel V. Pangilinan, chairman of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company last week said when asked when he sees the broadcast network turning a profit.

GOZON, 1ST FILIPINO TO WIN IN THE GLOBAL LEADERSHIP AWARDS!

GMA Network chairman and CEO Atty. Felipe L. Gozon was among the 21 awardees and the lone Filipino recipient during the fifth Global Leadership Awards in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Thursday.

Gozon was honored for his "keen involvement in spearheading the corporate business and community development, and for the continued effort and contributions done towards steering [the] business to greater heights."

ABS-CBN DECLARES CASH DIVIDEND OF UP TO PHP510 MILLION!

ABS-CBN's Board of Directors approved the declaration of a cash dividend to common stockholders equivalent to sixty centavos (P0.60) per common share for stockholders of record as of March 20, 2015 payable on or before April 20, 2015. The cash dividend translates to Php510 million based from the company's outstanding share of 850, 801, 081 as of March 6, 2015.

ABS-CBN CONSOLIDATES 5 TRIVIAL SUBSIDIARIES!

Multimedia giant ABS-CBN Corp. on Friday said it was absorbing several wholly owned subsidiaries.

The company's board of directors on Thursday approved the merger of ABS-CBN Interactive, Inc., ABS-CBN Multimedia, Inc., Sarimanok News Network, Inc., Sapientis Holdings Corporation and Studio 23, Inc., with ABS-CBN as the surviving corporation.

SKY CABLE PRESIDENT PROMOTED AS ABS-CBN'S CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER!

MANILA – Lopez-led ABS-CBN Corporation has named Carlo Katigbak as its new chief operating officer.

Katigbak previously served as the head of ABS-CBN Access in overseeing strategy formulation of SKY Cable Corporation, ABS-CBNmobile, and ABS-CBN TVplus.

ABS-CBN TVplus is ABS-CBN’s recently launched digital TV business.

Katigbak, a member of the ABS-CBN Board of Advisors, is currently the president of SKY Cable and managing director of Bayan Holdings Corp.

CIGNAL BEATS SKY CABLE, NOW HAILED AS THE LARGEST PAY TV OPERATOR IN PH!

MANILA - Cignal TV is now the Philippines’ biggest pay TV operator.

The country's direct-to-home pay TV provider reported that it closed last year with 845,000 subscribers, 13 percent more than the 630,000 in 2013.

The end-2014 subscriber count already surpassed Skycable’s 800,000. This, despite Sky Cable acquiring Destiny Cable  last year.

TV5 TAKES A MOVE TO CHALLENGE ABS-CBN'S IWANTTV!

SKY CABLE PLANS TO SPEND UP TO PHP2 BILLION FOR EXPANSION!

MANILA, Philippines - Sky Cable Corp., the pay TV arm of ABS-CBN Corp., is spending between P1.5 billion and P2 billion for its capital expenditures this year to help sustain the strong growth in its broadband service.

SkyCable chief operating officer Rodrigo Montinola said in an interview with reporters that the amount would be used to expand its pay TV business nationwide as it sees subscribers hitting one million over the next 24 months from the current level of 800,000.