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ABS-CBN leads move to develop IT zone in Quezon City
By Zinnia B. Dela Peña
Publish Date: [Friday, May 30, 2003]
Media giant ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. plans to lead the development of Quezon City into another information technology (IT) hub by riding on the call center bandwagon, its top officials said yesterday.
ABS-CBN president and chief executive officer Eugenio "Gabby" Lopez III said during the company’s stockholders meeting yesterday that they are currently in negotiations with at least two call center firms for the lease of three out of the 15 floors in the P6-billion Eugenio Lopez Communication Center which lies adjacent to the company’s main studio.
Lopez said the lease would not only maximize the idle space in the building but also contribute to regular earnings.
"We are looking at about 9,000 to 10,000 sq.m. to be leased out and rates of between P400 to P500 per square meter," Lopez said.
He said the move to jumpstart the development of the area into an IT zone is in response to Quezon City Mayor Feliciano ‘Sonny’ Belmonte’s call to bring in a fresh wave of investors into the city.
"This is part of the efforts of Mayor Belmonte to create an IT zone here which is similar to what they were able to do in Eastwood," he said.
He said once the company gets an endorsement from the Quezon City authorities, it would apply for an IT park status with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) to avail itself of various tax incentives.
On its financial performance, the ABS-CBN officials said with revenues expected to reach up to P1.5 billion in May, this would boost cumulative sales to P5 billion for the first five months of the year or over 20 percent higher than the year-ago level.
"We have been practically doing well from January to May. For this period, we would probably be hitting P4.2 billion in airtime revenues (excluding international operations). This should translate to a 25- to 27- percent growth from the previous level, " Lopez said.
ABS-CBN senior vice-president for integrated sales and marketing Nicanor Gabunada Jr. said the cost-cutting measures implemented by management have yielded positive results for the company.
"Achieving sales of P1 billion in one month is the result of people working creatively and aggressively together, in line with top management directions. It’s a very fulfilling, very challenging experience," Gabunada said.
"Today, ABS-CBN has become a stronger organization, in terms of sales and marketing. We have emerged from our organizational restructuring which started in the first quarter of 2002 as a more bullish and more creative force. We have services that cut costs for our customers and add value to our media offers," Gabunada said.
ABS Global’s net sales for 2002 climbed 36 percent to P1.911 billion. It is the holding company which runs The Filipino Channel, ABS-CBN News Channel, Cinema One, and Pinoy Central in the US and the Middle East, and has a worldwide subscribers’ base of 148,000.
ABS-CBN said earlier it would start its operations in Europe in July to take advantage of its satellite which currently serves its Middle East viewers.
ABS Global’s contribution to ABS-CBN’s income fuelled the company’s six percent consolidated net revenue growth for 2002. Other subsidiaries which pushed the broadcast firm’s revenues to P10.91 billion last year were Creative Programs, Inc., ABS-CBN Publishing, and Star Records.
For 2002, ABS-CBN’s airtime and broadcasting revenues amounted to P9.519 billion, down from P9.872 billion in 2001.
Company officials attributed the revenue drop to the absence of political advertisements.
This year, ABS-CBN officials said they are looking at a stronger corporate performance. The company's capital expenditures, pegged at P1.5 billion, will be used to maintain existing operations, fees for film rights, and its European expansion.
For this year, ABS-CBN has maturing debts amounting to P484 million, which would be paid out from internally generated funds.