The table below was done by
Kantar. We can see here that ABS-CBN dominates overwhelmingly nationwide though GMA still hasn't lost its foothold in the national capital region. This reflects on the TV ratings churned out by both Kantar & Agb Nielsen, both multinational rating agencies, on a regular basis where some nationally-popular programs supposedly turned out to be less popular in Manila, the nation's capital. A curiosity which at many times made me incredulous because some of those alleged popular programs in Manila, where I live, I practically didn't know anyone watching them, nor did I even get a drift they existed at all. Does this mean the inertia of habit, or allergy to remote control, is the dominant factor in loyalty to television channels in Manila?
Is this state of things too convenient? Exclusive channel loyalty, really?
I consider myself a "post-TV" person- I multitask & surf more the internet than watch TV but if ever I'm seated before the tube, I would more often than not be juggling through many channels, not to mention I still would be holding my smartphone or a tablet & many times, I have the laptop opened on my lap. An open channel may not even mean anything- like a doctor friend has a TV in his clinic waiting room & the channel was never changed since it was installed. I asked him what's the channel & he didn't know. But the thousands of patients & their companions who have waited in that room through the years must have thought that was his favorite channel. But the truth is, he never watches TV, he was too busy making money.
But it's true, many people are a creation of their habits. The remote control is one of the
de rigueur gadgets but a lot of people would rather brave a dodgy program than change the channel. I wrote before of my mother who never changed her channel through the decades & it took my recent intervention to pull her out of the inertia of her habits & discover a new world. Now she's stuck in her new channel because she still won't bother with the remote control. But is the Manila viewing public mostly seniors who never got comfortable with the remote control?
Personally, I consider the table below as just a guide. Statistics is not an exact science, how could an arbitrary sample ever be worthy to represent the truth of the whole market. Moreover, it doesn't capture the true whole market considering the millions of hits generated by the 10 million Filipino diaspora on the online viewing outlets (they have a big buying power because of the big remittance money that drives up the national consumption power). Ratings serve more the advertisers, just so they have an idea where they are sinking their money into.
But real popularity?
I have mentioned before of the inconsistencies of the ratings to reality. For example, a loveteam which was supposed to have rated higher on TV in Manila was practically unknown in Manila while the one who was supposed to have rated lower filled the Araneta Coliseum in Manila with their concert. Or another had a box-office hit films afterwards, in Manila and beyond while the supposedly high-rater has faded into oblivion.
