MVP gives up on GMA 7

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) has no plans of renewing an offer to acquire a stake in television broadcast firm GMA Network Inc., which is currently being courted by businessman and PLDT rival Ramon S. Ang of San Miguel Corp.

PLDT chair Manuel V. Pangilinan said during the company’s quarterly briefing Tuesday that there were no discussions with any shareholder of GMA Network, which is controlled by the Duavit, Jimenez and Gozon families, and PLDT would instead focus on its existing media assets.

PLDT, which already owns third-ranked TV5, had long sought a foothold in GMA 7 to strengthen its media diversification strategy but it has so far been unable to close a deal after three attempts, the latest of which expired last February.

“We have no plans to make a re-offer with respect to GMA7. There are no ongoing discussions with any shareholders of GMA as we speak,” Pangilinan told reporters. “We are busy with other things, with TV5 and the rest of our media assets. We would like to focus on those first.”

PLDT also announced yesterday that core earnings in the first quarter rose 2 percent to P9.8 billion on higher service revenues, lower financing costs and the share in earnings of subsidiaries. This puts it on track to hit its full-year core revenue target of P39.5 billion, up 2 percent compared to 2013, Pangilinan said.

Reported net income, after reflecting exceptional transactions for the period, grew by 2 percent to P9.4 billion. PLDT said consolidated service revenues for the first quarter of the year improved by 3 percent to P41.2 billion as revenue increases from the data and internet business exceeded declines from international and national long distance streams.

Total broadband, data and Internet revenues for the first three months of 2014 rose by P1.5 billion or 24 percent year-on-year to P7.6 billion and now accounted for 18 percent of total group service revenues. Wireless broadband revenues, exclusive of mobile Internet revenues, increased by 7 percent to P2.4 billion while mobile Internet revenues grew by 81 percent to P1.8 billion.