Kapuso Network Sues Kapamilya Network
January 3, 2008
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GMA Network on Thursday sued rival network ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. for allegedly accusing GMA of tampering metered households of research firm AGB Nielsen.
A report on the GMA-7 Web site said GMA demanded P10 million from ABS-CBN for moral damages, P2.5 million for exemplary damages, P1.5 million for attorney’s fees and P1 million for litigation expenses.
“There was series of on-the-air fabrication of statements imputing GMA 7 as behind the alleged rigging, manipulation of TV ratings in Bacolod City,” the Web site said, quoting GMA lawyer Gener Asuncion.
Aside from the network, other respondents in the charge sheet were radio dzMM station manager Angelo Palmones, Alona Magsalas, Junry Hidalgo, Jobert Sucaldito, Cristie Fermin, Luchi Cruz Valdez, Boyet Agustin, lawyer Maximillan Uy, Korina Sanchez, Malou Santos, Luis Andrada, Lani Gutierrez, Romel Gonzales, Nancy Yabut and Ian Reyno.
GMA earlier branded as libelous a report by DZMM correspondent Junry Hidalgo that AGB Nielsen named GMA Network as the network allegedly behind the TV ratings manipulation. The network has denied that it was behind the alleged rigging of AGB Nielsen ratings in Bacolod.
ABS-CBN, however, said it is standing by Hidalgo’s report. “We stand by our report in DZMM. Maya Reforma, in her interview with DZMM’s Junry Hidalgo this morning, identified GMA-7 as behind certain activities that resulted in exposing the affected panel homes,” said ABS-CBN spokesman Bong Osorio.
ABS-CBN earlier sued AGB Nielsen Media Research Philippines after receiving reports that a third party was contacting and bribing metered households in Bacolod City in an effort to influence the TV ratings.
In an affidavit submitted to the Quezon City Regional Trial Court, AGB Nielsen general manager Maya Reforma confirmed that 79 among 532 AGB Nielsen metered homes in six cities were exposed to “activities” of GMA Network, the main competitor of ABS-CBN. She said the panel homes were persuaded to watch GMA shows in exchange for monthly prizes including P500 in cash, groceries, umbrellas, pens and medicine.
“Panel homes who declare themselves to be watching ABS-CBN are asked to become a member of the GMA Kapuso viewers in order to receive a monthly supply of groceries and P500,” she said, describing one of the activities.
She added that of the 79 homes, 63 homes were visited once while 16 were visited twice or more times.
She said statistical tests conducted by AGB Nielsen showed that 16 of the 79 homes “showed a significant change to favor GMA in its viewing behavior.”
She noted, however, that the evidence obtained by AGB Nielsen “strongly indicates that the tampering was confined to Bacolod and for the period from July to September 2007.”
She said the research firm reprocessed all the original data it gathered from the TAM panel while excluding the tampered households contacted by GMA Network. “Based on our evaluation, AGB Nielsen found that viewing data did not significantly change even after the exclusion of the contacted panels from the original data,” she said.
She said, however, that the exclusion of 12 tampered homes in Cebu “caused some days to expected drop for GMA [ratings] but not at the expense of ABS-CBN which remained the same.”
A Quezon City judge earlier ordered AGB Nielsen to stop gathering and releasing data on nationwide TV ratings for 20 days.
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