As ABS-CBN seeks franchise renewal, records show 49 companies also had to allot 10% public service time

At least 49 broadcasting companies granted franchise since 2016 or during the Duterte administration were required to provide adequate public service time, congressional records have shown.

The public service time is equivalent to 10% of the paid commercials or advertisements placed with them, and shall be allocated based on need to the executive, legislative, judiciary, constitutional commissions and international humanitarian organizations duly recognized by statutes.

Based on the records of the 17th Congress, these 49 national and local broadcasting companies include:

1. Republic Broadcasting System, Inc., presently known as GMA Network, Inc. (Republic Act 10925)
2. Sarraga Integrated and Management Corporation  (Republic Act 10974)
3. The Iloilo Baptist Church, Inc. (Republic Act 10999)
4. Subic Broadcasting (Republic Act 11000)
5. Filipinas Broadcasting Association, Inc., presently known as Word Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11001)
6. Pangasinan Gulf Waves Network Corporation (Republic Act 11002)
7. Gateway UHF Television Broadcasting, Inc., Presently Known as Gateway Television Broadcasting, Inc., and doing business under the name and style of Hope Channel Philippines (Republic Act 11004)
8. Beta Broadcasting System, Inc. (Republic Act 11003)
9. Notre Dame Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11099)
10. Manila Broadcasting Company (Republic Act 11109)
11. Vanguard Radio Network Company, Inc. (Republic Act 11111)
12. Isla Communications, Co., presently known as Innove Communications, Inc. (Republic Act 11151)
13. Volunteer Lifecare Ministries, Inc. (Republic Act 11244)
14. Northeastern Broadcasting Services, Inc. (Republic Act 11245)
15. Ignite Telecommunications, Incorporated (Republic Act 11411)
16. Golden Nation Network, Inc. (Republic Act 11412)
17. Bright Star Broadcasting Network Corporation (Republic Act 11110)
18. Philippine Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11240)
19. University of Mindanao, doing business under the name and style of University of Mindanao Broadcasting Network and UM Broadcasting Network (Republic Act 11238)
20. Raven Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11246)
21. DXRA-RMC (Rizal Memorial Colleges) Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11252)
22. Advanced Media Broadcasting System, Inc., (Republic Act 11253)
23. Filipinas Broadcasting Network, Inc.  (Republic Act 11300)
24. Peñafrancia Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11302)
25. Delta Broadcasting System, Inc. (Republic Act 11303)
26. PBN Broadcasting Network, Inc. (Republic Act 11316)
27. Andres Bonifacio College Broadcasting System, Inc. (Republic Act 11317)
28. ABC Development Corporation, presently known as Tv5 Network, Inc. (Republic Act) 11320
29. Insular Broadcasting System, Inc. (Republic Act 11318)
30. Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, Inc. (Republic Act 11319)
31. First Love Broadcasting Network, Inc. (Republic Act 11341)
32. Tirad Pass Radio TV Broadcasting Network, Inc. (Republic Act 11342)
33. Mountain Province Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11353)
34. Southern Broadcasting Network, Inc. (Republic Act 11354)
35. Radioworld Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11355)
36. Beacon Communications Systems, Inc. (Republic Act 11356)
37. Solidnorth Broadcasting System, Inc. (Republic Act 11366)
38. Mareco Broadcasting Network, Inc. (Republic Act 11367)

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39. Radio Audience Developers Integrated Organization, Inc. (Republic Act 11368)
40. Rajah Broadcasting Network, Inc. (Republic Act 11414)
41. Pacific Broadcasting System, Inc. (Republic Act 11413)
42. Radyo Pilipino Corporation (Republic Act 11415)
43. Philippine Radio Corporation (Republic Act 11416)
44. RT Broadcast Specialist Phil. Inc. (Republic Act 11417)
45. Ultimate Entertainment, Inc. (Republic Act 11418)
46. Cadiz Radio and Television Network, Inc. (Republic Act 11419)
47. Vimcontu Broadcasting Corporation (Republic Act 11421)
48. Swara Sug Media Corporation (Republic Act 11422)
49. Audiovisual Communicators, Inc.  (Republic Act 11447)

There were two broadcasting companies, however, which were granted franchise without the said provision on adequate public service time: the Malindang Broadcasting Network and the Cebu Broadcasting Network, an affiliate of Manila Broadcasting Corporation.

Think tank Infrawatch convenor Terry Ridon said that such a situation must be rectified because otherwise, the 49 others required to provide public service time could raise a legal question based on the Constitutional provision on equal protection of the law.

“I would assume Congress’ wisdom then was to remove the public service provision for these two franchises. But if a significant number of franchises have this provision, the two franchises should be amended to incorporate this provision,” Ridon, a lawyer, argued.

“Because otherwise, the other 40 franchises would raise the parity provision in their respective franchises, in which incentives enjoyed by other franchises should likewise be extended to them,” he added.

Given the situation of at least 49 franchise grantees, House Committee on Legislative Franchises member Alfredo Garbin of Ako Bicol party-list said this proves that the public service time provision under House Bill 6732 granting franchise to broadcasting network ABS-CBN does not violate the equal protection of the law under the Constitution as claimed by Cagayan de Oro Representative Rufus Rodriguez.

“Walang puwedeng magsabi na may violation ng equal protection of the law kasi practice na ito sa similarly situated broadcast companies,” Garbin, a lawyer, told GMA News Online.

“That is why the same public service time provision is also there for ABS-CBN,” Garbin added.

He said that a general law could also be passed to specifically require public service time for broadcasting companies seeking legislative franchises to operate.

“At any rate, we are thinking of a general law para lahat na ng magpapa-approve will be required to allot public service time which is 10%. Pinaplano ito,” Garbin said.

'Critical'

The 10% public service time requirement for broadcasting companies granted franchise to operate is a critical communication tool, especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Ridon added.

“This affords the government the free use of airwaves for necessary public service announcements. This is critical for crisis and emergency situations such as the coronavirus pandemic we are confronting at the moment,” Ridon, a former Kabataan party-list lawmaker and once the chairperson of the Presidential Commission on the Urban Poor, told GMA News Online.

“In practice, this would afford the government at least six minutes of free airtime per hour of programming,” he added.

In addition, Ridon also said that the provision is a concrete recognition that the use of broadcast frequencies is a privilege and that these frequencies are ultimately owned by the state.

At the House

The House Committee on Legislative Franchises conducted on March 10 its first and only hearing on the 11 pending bills seeking the renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal for 25 years.

ABS-CBN's franchise lapsed last May 4.

Subsequently, ABS-CBN went off-air last May 5 after the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) issued a cease and desist order against the broadcast network for lack of franchise.

NTC’s May 5 action was a turnaround from NTC Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba’s statement before the House of Representatives in March that they will issue a provisional authority to ABS-CBN given that the House and the Senate made communications stating they are in favor of such issuance. 

Speaker Alan Cayetano and other House leaders then sponsored House Bill 6732 granting ABS-CBN a provisional franchise that will last until October this year.

The bill was then approved on first and second reading on the same day, with the House constituted as the House Committee of the Whole.

The bill’s second reading approval however was eventually recalled on Monday, May 18, since the Constitution states that a bill must be approved in three readings on three separate days if the President did not certify such measure as urgent.

House Bill 6732 has not been certified by President Rodrigo Duterte as an urgent measure, and even he said in December 2019 that he will see to it that ABS-CBN will be out by 2020. —KG, GMA News