Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 7) – Advertising companies in the country expressed alarm over the abrupt shutdown of media giant ABS-CBN.
Dan Villa, chairman of advertising agency CreatiVilla, revealed that many advertising firms are worried about how they will reach their target consumers this year.
He said said many companies depend on ABS-CBN for their advertising exposure because of its wide reach.
“The move was so sudden and everybody, more so the large stakeholder entities, thinkers and planners were caught flat-footed,” said Villa in a statement.
Raymond Arrastia, chairman of Publicis Groupe Philippines, said they were caught off guard by the cease and desist order of the National Telecommunications Commission against the Lopez family-owned broadcast network on Wednesday.
“ABS-CBN is very important to us because they are the ones with the widest audience,” Arrastia said in an interview with CNN Philippines’ Rico Hizon. “They allow us to reach the provincial areas. So, taking this out means we have to find ways to reach the market.”
Arrastia also emphasized that the Kapamilya network has many platforms to reach audience, which help promote the brands they represent.
“What is actually overlooked is the fact that they have the strongest AM and FM radio network nationwide,” Arrastia explained. “It will probably be a great vacuum to fill as far as the advertising community and reaching the consumers is concerned.”
Nevertheless, he pointed out that ABS-CBN’s other platforms like cable, digital, and social media can also be utilized as an alternative for the advertisers to place their ads.
“We need to tap other social channels to supplement the whole buying effort to reach the same audience,” Arrastia said.
Villa also valued the emergence of digital platforms of media outlets, but insisted that television remains the prime avenue for advertisers.
“While digital media is fast occupying the media landscape, it doesn’t fulfill a good media mix,” he noted. “TV still dominates.”
Although there are other media companies that advertisers can forge partnerships with, the CreatiVilla chairman stressed the absence of ABS-CBN is not good for the advertising industry.
“Competition in the media is a major component for a media buyer’s choice with more options to choose from,” Villa said. “Now, the absence of ABS-CBN would inadvertently eliminate it. We have a problem with that.”
Arrastia expressed hope that ABS-CBN will reopen its operations, pending the approval of the temporary restraining order it filed before the Supreme Court Thursday afternoon, so that they can negotiate again with their clients.
“First order of business for us is to look for the needs of our clients,” he said. “We need to be creative and find a way in order for them to gain the reach and the frequency that they use to have with ABS-CBN in the roster.”
Both Arrastia and Villa said their respective companies are now discussing adjustments with their clients amid the unexpected shutdown of ABS-CBN.
“I believe that this is just a transition,” Villa said, “and the advertisers shall not immediately go berserk but instead, shall be cautious a bit. Somehow, they were already forewarned about the foreboding with a counter scenario and possible alternatives already offered.”
The NTC ordered ABS-CBN on Wednesday to stop its operations due to the expiration of its legislative franchise, backing out from its promise to legislators in March that it will issue a provisional permit to the network pending its franchise renewal.
The shutdown covered the network’s five AM stations, 18 FM stations, and 42 TV stations, including Channels 2 and 23.
President Rodrigo Duterte has been publicly ranting against ABS-CBN since assuming office, saying the network refused to carry his campaign commercials even if they have been already paid for.
In 2018, Duterte said he will block the renewal of the network’s franchise. Last year, he told the Lopez family to just sell the company to a new owner to boost its chances of staying in business.
