Monday, January 20, 2020

Lea Salonga, Anne Curtis urge followers to sign petition for ABS-CBN franchise renewal

Other stars also urge followers to sign the petition

Lea Salonga and Anne Curtis called on their followers to sign a petition for the renewal of media giant ABS-CBN's franchise, which is set to expire on March 30, 2020.

The National Union of Journalists launched a signature campaign last week, as the House prepares to finally tackle the network's franchise renewal.

On Twitter, Lea said: "Yes, I have personal and professional reasons for this one. Not gonna lie." Lea is one of the coaches of the Voice of the Philippines, which will return for its teen edition this year.

Anne, who is currently on leave from It's Showtime because of her pregnancy, tweeted: "Please sign the petition. So many lives will be affected by the jobs that will be lost."

Other stars such as Marvin Agustin, Vice Ganda, Ogie Alcasid, Karla Estrada, and Melai Cantiveros also urged followers to sign the petition.


View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Melai Cantiveros - Francisco (@mrandmrsfrancisco) on

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Melai Cantiveros - Francisco (@mrandmrsfrancisco) on

Some of the network's contract artists such as Liza Soberano and Sharon Cuneta earlier said they hope that President Rodrigo Duterte will reconsider his decision about not renewing the franchise.

Duterte has threatened to block the passage of a law that would grant the station a congressional franchise. Back in April 2017, he accused the network of "swindling" him because they allegedly did not air his political advertisements during the 2016 presidential elections.

In the Philippines, broadcast companies such as radio and television networks must obtain a franchise from Congress under Republic Act 3846.

The franchise bill needs approval by the House of Representatives before it is forwarded to the Senate. A version of the bill approved by both the House and the Senate will still require presidential approval.

https://www.rappler.com/entertainment/news/249767-lea-salonga-anne-curtis-calls-for-support-abs-cbn-franchise-renewal-signs-petition

House to hold session in Batangas on Wednesday

The House of Representatives is set to hold its plenary session on Wednesday at the Batangas City Convention Center in a bid to listen “directly” to the victims of the Taal Volcano eruption.

During his opening speech at the resumption of the session on Monday, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said the House leadership made the proposal since the Batangas City Sports Coliseum, which was turned into one of the biggest evacuation centers for the affected families, is beside the convention center.

“The proposal is that we move to become a Committee of the Whole and listen to different representatives from all over Laguna, Cavite, Batangas; listen to the first responders, listen to those who are directly affected,” Cayetano said.

House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez raised the motion on the conduct of the session in Batangas City and was subsequently approved by the plenary.

“In view of the unanimity in spirit, and the consensus arrived at by the leaders of the House at your office, and at your instance, we move to hold the session this Wednesday at the Batangas City Convention Center at 1 p.m.,” Romualdez said.

Cayetano said he has already tasked the House Committee on Disaster Management, chaired by Leyte Rep. Lucy Torres-Gomez, to consolidate all efforts for the recovery and rehabilitation of the affected people from Batangas, Laguna, and Cavite.

“We want to come up with a feasible, strategic and comprehensive rehabilitation plan and assign whether it is one person, one agency or one department that will be fully accountable,” he said.

Cayetano earlier promised that the House would fast-track the passage of a measure proposing the creation of a Department of Disaster Resilience.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1091390

Time running out on ABS-CBN, says solon

By Ellson Quismorio

Cagayan de Oro 2nd District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez prodded on Monday the House Committee on Legislative Franchises to act with haste on the bills seeking the renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise, as time is quickly running out for the broadcast giant.

“Time is of the essence because the ABS-CBN franchise will expire on March 30 this year. Congress will adjourn for its Holy Week break on March 11. There will only be 22 session days between now and March 11,” he said.

ABS-CBN has over 11,000 workers, and their continued employment hangs in the balance.

Rodriguez has authored House Bill (HB) No. 5705, which seeks the renewal of the Lopez-owned network’s franchise for another 25 years. There are nine similar bills pending with the Legislative Franchises panel, which is chaired by Palawan 1st District Rep. Franz Alvarez.

The Mindanao lawmaker said Congress “should always uphold the constitutional mandate under Section 4, Article 111 of the Charter to ensure freedom of the press.”

He said the Alvarez committee should “hear all the authors of the 10 bills and stakeholders, especially ABS-CBN.”

“Then the committee will have to decide to renew or not to renew the franchise. But it is not proper not to act on my bill and the other bills,” said Rodriguez, chairman of the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments.

Rodriguez noted that ABS-CBN is the country’s largest media conglomerate in terms of revenue, operating income, net income, assets, equity, market capitalization, and number of employees.

“In my explanatory note on Bill No. 5707, I stated that ABS-CBN has been very big on corporate social responsibility, in helping others and in giving back. The late Gina Lopez initiated the Bantay Bata 163, Bantay Kalikasan and Kapit Bisig Para Sa Ilog Pasig projects,” he added.

The Legislative Franchises panel has said it would soon schedule hearings on the ABS-CBN bills, and that its deliberations would be fair.

But it also reminded the TV-radio network that the grant of a franchise is a privilege of Congress and not a matter of right on the part of the franchisee.

https://news.mb.com.ph/2020/01/20/time-running-out-on-abs-cbn-says-solon/

Vilma Santos proposes creation of Taal Commission

Rep. Vilma Santos-Recto (Batangas) proposed the creation of a commission that would assist the victims of the eruption of the Taal Volcano.

In a privilege speech Monday, Santos told her colleagues at the House of Representatives that 41,000 families or about 180,000 individuals stay in evacuation centers within and outside Batangas.

"I propose to this body for the creation of Taal Commission at the appropriate time — the relief rehabilitation and assistance of those affected by the eruption of Taal Volcano," Santos said.

Santos, also a former Batangas governor, urged Congress to make a realignment of funds in coordination with the House appropriations committee, Department of Budget and Management and other government agencies for the immediate release of funds.

This would address the crisis cost by Taal Volcano's steam-driven eruption in order to ensure the immediate rehabilitation and resettlement of those affected.

"In addition, I hope we can craft more laws that would improve our local government units' disaster preparedness capabilities so that we can ensure the safety, health and economic well-being of our people," Santos said.

Citing Phivolcs Director Renato Solidum, Santos reminded her fellow Batangueños that Alert Level 4 is still in effect over Taal Volcano, which means that an explosive eruption is still possible.

The lawmaker reiterated that residents within the 14-kilometer danger zone have to stay outside the perimeter and temporarily take shelter in evacuation centers.

The towns of Agoncillo, San Nicolas, Talisay, Balete, Mataas na Kahoy, Lemery, Laurel, Taal, part of Cuenca, Alitagtag, Sta. Teresita, San Jose, Malvar, Tanauan City, Lipa City, parts of Tagaytay City and parts of Cavite province are in high-risk zones.

Meanwhile, Santos' husband Senate Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto filed a bill seeking to create the Taal Volcano Rehabilitation and Development Commission before the Senate.

Under Senate Bill 1275, the Taal Volcano Rehabilitation and Development Fund will allocate P50 billion to provide immediate relief to affected individuals and families.

This would also establish resettlement centers, homesites and townsites for displaced families; provide livelihood and employment opportunities for residents; and construct, repair, rehabilitate or reconstruct public infrastructure needed in affected communities.

"Ultimately, this proposed measure seeks to hasten the recovery and sustain the economic development of communities affected by the eruption of Taal Volcano, with the hopes that the return to normalcy will aid not only in the economic prosperity of the Southern Tagalog Region but of the entire country as well," Recto said.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2020/01/20/1986373/vilma-santos-proposes-creation-taal-commission

Start ABS-CBN franchise hearings, solon urges House colleagues

An administration congressman urged his colleagues Monday to start deliberations on ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal, as supporters from media warned that efforts to shut down the news company were an “attack on press freedom.”

Congress has only 22 session days left to decide whether to extend the franchise for another 25 years, said Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, who filed one of at least 8 bills seeking to keep ABS-CBN on air. The franchise is set to expire on March 30.

“Time is of the essence,” he said in a statement. “It is not proper not to act on my bill and the other bills.”

Rodriguez, a member of the majority, said the legislature “should always uphold the constitutional mandate... to ensure freedom of the press.”

The Cagayan de Oro lawmaker cited ABS-CBN's corporate social responsibility projects, including the late Gina Lopez's Bantay Bata 163, Bantay Kalikasan and Kapit Bisig Para Sa Ilog Pasig projects.

President Rodrigo Duterte has repeatedly complained about ABS-CBN’s reporting, including its failure to air a political ad of his during the 2016 campaign.

Last month, the president also told owners, in a televised speech, to just sell ABS-CBN.

“Yung nangyayari sa ABS-CBN is an attack on press freedom. It’s ABS-CBN now. Sino pa kaya ang susunod sa malapit na hinaharap?” journalism professor Danilo Arao said in a Manila forum.

(What's happening to ABS-CBN is an attack on press freedom. It's ABS-CBN now. Who's next in the near future?)

How the press and the public at large will react to government pressure on ABS-CBN’s franchise will provide an “important test,” said journalist Vergel Santos, former chairman of the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility.

“Tanungin ninyo ang inyong sarili. Anong gagawin natin dito? (Ask yourselves. What do we do now?)” he said in the forum, noting Filipinos lost their “almost instinctive moral exercise” to protest whenever basic freedoms came under threat.

Malacañang maintains that press freedom is not at stake in ABS-CBN's franchise renewal.

There are 8 bills seeking an extension of ABS-CBN's franchise. There are also other bills seeking to grant fresh franchises to its cable TV, UHF free TV, and data services as these will expire in March 2020, July 2020, and June 2022, respectively.

The House committee on legislative franchises earlier said it would soon schedule hearings on the ABS-CBN bills, and that deliberations would be fair. -- with a report from RG Cruz, ABS-CBN News

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/01/20/20/start-abs-cbn-franchise-hearings-solon-urges-house-colleagues

22 session days left: Rodriguez calls for swift passage of ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal

By JOHN CARLO M. CAHINHINAN

Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodrigues has urged the House committee on legislative franchise to expedite the passage of the franchise renewal bill of broadcast giant ABS-CBN, with only 22 sessions days remaining before the Congressional recess on March.

Rodriguez stressed that “time is of the essence because the ABS-CBN franchise will expire on March 30 this year.”

“Congress will adjourn for its Holy Week break on March 11. There will only be 22 session days between now and March 11,” said Rodriguez.

Rodriguez last December authored Bill No. 5705—one of the nine proposed legislations that seek the renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise for another 25 years.

According to Rodriguez, Congress “should always uphold the constitutional mandate under Section 4, Article 111 of the Charter to ensure freedom of the press.”

He said the committee will have to decide to renew or not to renew the franchise, “but it is not proper not to act on my bill and the other bills.”

Rodriguez noted being ABS-CBN is the country’s largest media conglomerate in terms of revenue, operating income, net income, assets, equity, market capitalization, and number of employees “has been very big on corporate social responsibility, in helping others and in giving back.”

“The late Gina Lopez initiated the Bantay Bata 163, Bantay Kalikasan and Kapit Bisig Para Sa Ilog Pasig projects,” he added.

The legislative franchise panel under Palawan Rep. Franz “Chicoy” Alvarez has said it would soon schedule hearings on the ABS-CBN bills, and that its deliberations would be fair, but it also reminded the TV-radio network that the grant of a “franchise is a privilege of Congress and not a matter of right on the part of the franchisee.”

https://politics.com.ph/22-session-days-left-rodriguez-calls-for-swift-passage-of-abs-cbns-franchise-renewal/

The Butcher | Franchise or no franchise, ABS-CBN will survive

Now that the approval for the renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise is still hanging  in the air, people working for the network are understandably on tenterhooks. But life goes on for everyone.

Sure, they talk about the possibility of the network losing its franchise from time to time. However, that issue doesn’t necessarily consume them 24 hours a day. What they discuss mostly among themselves is still work-related.

The on-cam talents continue to wait for their next assignments, which at this point are already few and far between – what with so many of them crowding the ABS-CBN stable.

The technical team, meanwhile, is busy with the network’s transfer to its new studios in San Jose del Monte in Bulacan. (There are unconfirmed reports that the existing studio along Sgt. Esguerra will be turned into another Rockwell complex.) The new ABS-CBN property in San Jose del Monte is huge – some 7.7 hectares.

So far, two sound stages are already finished and operational. All episodes of Your Moment, in fact, were completed there. Some of the network’s forthcoming soaps may also hold its shoots in the San Jose del Monte studio. Star Cinema’s next project most likely will also be filmed there in its entirety.

The two studios are of Hollywood standards – with high ceilings and measuring 1,500 square meters each. So far, there are already inquiries from American film companies that regularly shoot here in the Philippines about the possibility of renting the new ABS-CBN studio facilities. ABS-CBN president Carlo Katigbak, however, isn’t open to the idea. At least, not yet.

At this point, there are 10 more sound stages that are waiting to be built. The ABS-CBN technical people, however, are already undergoing rigorous training on how to run the new facilities.

Of course, while some ABS-CBN employees are excited about the transfer, there are also those who dread the commute to the new studios, which may take an hour to reach from Quezon City – on a day without traffic, that is.

Right now, those who do not have vehicles, but are required to do chores there are forced to take the shuttle from SM San Jose. But there are ongoing talks with the Ayalas for them to devote an MRT station there for the convenience of the ABS-CBN employees and, eventually, for the benefit of the live studio audience who may want to watch It’sShowtime and ASAP.

But why does the network continue to plan for the future when there is a possibility that its franchise will not be renewed? The ABS-CBN people, in fact, are said to be expecting the worst.

There is still a glimmer of hope for them, however. All is not lost.

In case, the ABS-CBN franchise doesn’t get renewed, all that the network is losing is just its frequency. Its regular viewers will not see It’s Showtime and FPJ’s Ang Probinsiyano anymore on Channel 2. Likewise with the listeners of the radio stations DZMM and MOR. 

But they can still watch their favorite Kapamilya shows in other ABS-CBN platforms – like cable, I Want and the The Filipino Channel abroad. And lest we forget – there’s always Facebook.

The truth is, only 60% of the population still watch TV since most others already rely on their computers and phones for information and entertainment. There would even be less in the following years. In a decade or so, it is possible for regular TV to just be a thing of the past.   

Actually, even before the threat of franchise cancellation came around, ABS-CBN was already preparing to get into other platforms since its executives had long been aware of the possibility of regular television going extinct.

It’s just unfortunate that the threat of franchise cancellation came at a time when the other platforms aren’t exactly profitable yet.

Are the ABS-CBN employees going to lose their jobs? Perhaps some may be affected. But then, the network would surely need people to run its alternative platforms. One thing for sure though is that there would be a lot of adjusting to do when it comes to the workflow because of the new network setup.

And, yes, but hopefully this doesn’t happen: There could be some adjustment to their pay since the new platforms may not earn as much (at least, not yet) compared to the huge advertising revenues ABS-CBN gets at the moment from regular television.

The only people who will definitely be most affected, frankly speaking, are the Lopezes because they stand to earn less. But why worry about them when they have other businesses?

Besides, this problem regarding the cancellation of the ABS-CBN franchise is just kindergarten to them. When Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law in 1972, they lost everything: ABS-CBN, Meralco and The Manila Chronicle. Geny Lopez was even jailed.

But 14 years later, they bounced back and ABS-CBN regained its reputation as the biggest broadcast network this side of the world.

The Lopez family had always been risk-takers. In the late 1960s, they built that entire ABS-CBN compound in what was then called Bohol Avenue in Quezon City.  It had the most modern facilities and studios. In fact, ABS-CBN became the first local network to broadcast in full color.

In 1971, in its attempt to monopolize television, it opened another station aside from Channel 2. This was Channel 4 (not to be confused with the government station).

This was how the two sister stations operated: Every day at 6 p.m. for example, ABS-CBN Channel 2 aired the variety show On With the Show with Mitch Valdes, Maritess Revilla and Manolo Favis. On the very same time slot, ABS-CBN Channel 4 also aired a program with a similar format--The Wow Generation with Baby O’Brien.

In that manner, ABS-CBN had a bigger slice of the advertising pie and definitely had a bigger chunk of the viewership, compared to Channels 5, 7, 9 and 13. (MBC-11 had already gone out of business by then.) That also proved to be cost-efficient: The on-cam talents shared one dressing room and had the same team of makeup artists. After they were all dolled-up, they went to their respective studios that were just across each to make more money for ABS-CBN. But all that ended when Marcos shut down ABS-CBN.

Even during the post-EDSA I ABS-CBN, the Lopezes continued taking risks. Putting up TFC was a gamble for one. But that later paid off handsomely.

In 1992, it bought the exclusive coverage rights to the Barcelona Olympics. Two years later, the network handled the Miss Universe show in Manila. Those were costly projects. ABS-CBN, however, wanted the prestige. That sure added luster to the company’s image.

GMA operates differently. From 1998 till 2010, for instance, it aired the Binibining Pilipinas pageant. If you go by the math, any network airing a special event is bound to lose money because its programs are preempted and regular advertising income is lost. The network, however, doesn’t go to the poorhouse because of that. At most, only a night’s income is sacrificed.

When GMA gave up Binibining Pilipinas in spite of Venus Raj’s fourth place win at Miss Universe, ABS-CBN gladly took the pageant in and got lucky: All the Philippine bets after Venus did impressively at the international beauty congress and became news-makers.

GMA was unable to get hold of any of those girls because they were only exclusive to ABS-CBN. Jessica Soho actually had to fly to New York to corner Pia Wurtzbach.

ABS-CBN, on the other hand, was able to bleed each one of those beauty queens for all they were worth. Oh, how those girls brought in the ratings because – as they say – everybody loves a winner.

Perhaps that was one of the reasons why GMA slid down to No. 2 sometime in 2014 after lording it over in Philippine television beginning in late 2003. 

And so – for those worried about ABS-CBN losing its franchise, there’s no need to panic. Trust ABS-CBN to know how to play its cards right.

https://pikapika.ph/pikadaily/the-butcher-franchise-or-no-franchise-abs-cbn-will-survive

Palace: Crisis over ABS-CBN franchise unlikely

Sen. Panfilo Lacson’s fears that a quo warranto petition to cancel ABS-CBN’s franchise might lead to a “constitutional crisis” is unlikely, Malacañang said on Sunday, stressing that there is a distinction between congressional franchises and violations of the law.

“It is the Solicitor General’s job to file cases against those violating the law. The franchise coming from Congress is different, and so is violating the franchise. That’s two things. Both can independently be taken together,” Panelo said over dzIQ. “That is unlikely. Why should there be a constitutional crisis?”

He made the remarks after Lacson said the planned quo warranto proceeding could cause a constitutional crisis because should the Supreme Court grant the quo warranto petition while Congress is conducting a plenary deliberation on ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal, there would be a question of which would prevail.

“Whatever the Supreme Court says becomes part of the law of the land, but we are talking about the Constitution. The Supreme Court cannot declare as unconstitutional the ongoing deliberations of Congress about franchise renewal, because it is clear in the Constitution that franchise renewal is for to decide,” Lacson said in a radio interview on Saturday.

But Panelo said Calida’s plan to file a quo warranto petition is based on violations of the franchise, such as the broadcast network’s alleged unpaid taxes, and even claimed that there may been collusion in the four tax compromise agreements that ABS-CBN reached with the Bureau of Internal Revenue and approved by the Court of Tax Appeals.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1215222/palace-crisis-over-abc-cbn-franchise-unlikely

ABS-CBN to lose big if franchise not renewed

IF troubled TV network giant ABS-CBN fails to retain its franchise, this will inflict a massive toll on the Lopez-led group’s performance in the market, an analyst said.

“Telebroadcasting is a significant part of ABS-CBN, so a non-renewal of its franchise would be a drag to the company,” Japhet Louis Tantiangco, research analyst at Philstocks Financial Inc., told The Manila Times on Friday.

Tantiangco said without the franchise, the company would go through “challenging times as it builds new business strategies to cope with the new circumstances.”

It was in early 2017 when Duterte started his tirade against the network for allegedly airing biased stories against him. This was fanned by ABS-CBN’s airing of a political ad showing him cursing and making rape jokes.

The President in late December said it would be wise if the media giant sold the company because “it’s only now that Filipinos would be able to get back at your wrongdoings.”

ABS-CBN has kept mum on the issue.

Tantiangco said, however, that while the non-renewal of the franchise would be a “heavy opportunity loss” for the network, “it would most likely survive given that its income sources are diversified.”

Tantiangco said ABS-CBN could stamp its footprint in other businesses, including digital, cosmetics and financial technology.

In 2019, ABS-CBN began its venture into other industries, outside of media, which may “serve as a cushion” amid uncertainties with its franchise renewal. The network pursued its deals with cosmetics brand Ever Bilena Cosmetics Inc., information and technology firm iBayad Online Ventures and The Chosen Bun Inc.

On TV5’s openness to air ABS-CBN shows, Tantiangco said: “The blocktime agreement offer would entail costs for ABS-CBN, so we’ll have to look into this first.”

Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said the House of Representatives should start acting on the pending franchise renewal, as he expressed support for the TV station.

“Congress must uphold the Constitution to ensure press freedom,” Rodriguez said.

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines also launched an online signature campaign for 1 million signatures to urge Congress to extend ABS-CBN’s franchise.

As of 12 noon on Sunday, more than 26,000 people had signed the petition.

‘No constitutional crisis’

Palace spokesman Salvador Panelo said there would be no “constitutional crisis” if the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) would file a case against ABS-CBN over alleged violations on its franchise.

Panelo was reacting to Sen. Panfilo Lacson’s warning of a “constitutional crisis” if the Supreme Court would grant the OSG’s quo warranto petition to revoke the media network’s franchise because its renewal was in the hands of Congress.

Panelo said Solicitor General Jose Calida had the responsibility to file cases against violators of the law. He added that charges in violation of the franchise were different from the issuance of a franchise.

Panelo said the unpaid taxes of the Lopez Holdings Corp., the parent company of ABS-CBN, was one of the bases for the quo warranto petition.

ABS-CBN’s franchise is set to expire in March. Republic Act (RA) 7966, which granted it 25-year franchise, was enacted on March 30, 1995.

Nine bills seeking to extend ABS-CBN’s franchise have been filed and are pending deliberations at the House of Representatives’ Committee on Legislative Franchises. Under RA 3846, radio and television broadcast stations are required to seek a franchise from Congress before being allowed to operate.

WITH DIVINA NOVA JOY DELA CRUZ

https://www.manilatimes.net/2020/01/20/news/top-stories/abs-cbn-to-lose-big-if-franchise-not-renewed/675896/