Tycoon Ramon S. Ang, president of San Miguel Corp., is interested to bid for state-run Intercontinental Broad-casting Corp. (IBC-13), which the government said it would sell at a floor price of P1.977 billion.
Ang said that he would join the bidding for the cash-strapped television network once it was placed on the auction block. Ang’s potential participation would likely be done on a personal capacity.
Ang had sought out media assets in the past. In 2014, Ang said he was in talks with the owners of GMA Network Inc. on the acquisition of a minority stake. The negotiations, however, collapsed in the middle of last year as “deal-breaking” disagreements erupted between both camps.
A spokesperson for Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., which controls TV5 and had previously expressed interest in IBC-13, said they were “not interested” to bid for the state TV network.
GMA chair and chief executive Felipe Gozon also said they were not interested to bid.
An official of ABS-CBN Corp. did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The privatization rationalizes the State’s portfolio in the Communications Sector in view of the overlap with PTV-4, which is already sufficient to address market failures in the private broadcast industry, such as providing programs with social value but are not considered profitable.
This comes in the wake of the recent revitalization of PTV-4 mandated by Republic Act No. 10390 which identified the privatization of IBC-13[1] as one of the sources of funding the increase in PTV-4’s capital.
IBC-13 was also in financial distress–operating at an average net loss of P45.26 million from 2010 to 2014 and receiving operational subsidies amounting to P23.56 million in 2015. The privatization should pave the way for the infusion of additional capital to revitalize the network, which will also be able to operate with more flexibility as a private entity.
The privatization of IBC-13 will be done through public bidding with an estimated floor price of P1.977 billion. A committee composed of representatives from GCG, the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO), and IBC-13 shall implement and conduct the said process.
Since GCG’s establishment in 2011 as the central advisory and oversight body for ensuring the active exercise of the State’s ownership rights in GOCCs, it has abolished 22 nonperforming GOCCs and classified 25 more as inactive or nonoperational.
IBC-13 started out in 1960 as a private company known as Inter-Island Broadcasting Corp., and then was sequestered by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) in 1986 as part of the recovery of ill-gotten wealth. It has been one of 2 networks considered as GOCCs aside from Philippine Television Network, Inc. (PTV-4). The State also has a minority share in Radio Philippines Network (RPN-9).
