GMA 7 leads ratings war in Luzon, says exec

MANILA, Philippines—GMA Network Inc. leads its rival ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. in the economically important television markets of “Mega Manila” and “Urban Luzon,” officials of the publicly listed broadcast firm said recently.

In a briefing conducted for Inquirer editors and reporters, GMA Network chairman Felipe Gozon noted that from July 1 to 20, GMA was the top channel in “National Urban Philippines” with a day average of 34.4 household share points, above ABS-CBN’s 31.7 and TV5’s 15.5.

“We are number one according to the most widely used and most credible rating system,” Gozon said, referring to the results of the Nielsen TV Audience Measurement. “This is used by the most number of firms in the industry.”

While GMA leads in Mega Manila and Luzon—which account for 77 percent of viewers nationwide, and an estimated 70 percent of the country’s spending power—Gozon said that ABS-CBN continues to dominate Visayas and Mindanao.

Gozon noted that the rating system that GMA subscribes to is used by 21 companies, including two other local networks, TV5 and Solar Entertainment; Faulkner Media; CBN Asia; 13 advertising firms; and three regional clients.

On the other hand, ABS-CBN is the only local major TV network reportedly subscribing to Kantar Media, formerly known as TNS.

In Mega Manila alone, the Nielsen TV Audience Measurement has a sample size of 880 homes as compared with Kantar Media’s 770 homes.