AdBoard bats for review of comm’l loading rules

The Advertising Board of the Philippines (AdBoard), the umbrella group of advertising and media associations, has proposed a review of the commercial loading policy in view of the controversy regarding the withdrawal of GMA Network from the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP).

In a letter to the AdBoard board of directors, its Trade Practices and Conduct Committee (TPCC) chairman Miguel Ramos said while the KBP has primary jurisdiction on GMA-7’s case since it involves parties in the same industry sector, the issue of overloading affects other industry sectors as well.

GMA-7, the country’s second largest broadcast company, withdrew its membership from the KBP last Sept. 1, citing its "concerns and dissatisfaction with the recent thrusts and actions of the KBP."

One of the issues GMA-7 raised was the KBP’s show-cause order on the network’s alleged overloading during the early part of June. The KBP charged that GMA-7 violated the 18-minute rule, which stated that TV programs should be loaded with at most 18 minutes of commercials for every hour of broadcast.

Ramos pointed out that based on their rules, broadcast media should conform to the set standards on allowable (revenue and non-revenue) non-program materials within regular time measurements.

Hence, he said the loading policy should "continue to be guided by the 18-minute rule until such time that the results of ongoing industry-wide surveys and studies define and identify the optimum level and this be adopted by the KBP in future guidelines."

The TPCC also proposed that a neutral third party "continuously monitors and inform all parties involved in the planning, buying and implementation of broadcast orders for television the actual loading practices of all networks on a regular basis."

"We believe that in the interest of all stakeholders in the matter of self-regulation, this ruling should continue to guide the work systems and procedures of all media partners within and outside of the KBP," Ramos said.

GMA Network chairman, president and CEO Felipe Gozon said while the company does not espouse a no-limit policy on commercial loads in TV programs, "it believes that the optimum commercial load should be intelligently determined based on the free market forces and conditions and other relevant factors like cost of programs, cost of operations and price per commercial spot."

Gozon said the 18-minute rule does not apply worldwide, citing that in Indonesia, the rule extends to 20 minutes of program duration; 12 minutes in Singapore and Korea; and 10 minutes in Malaysia, Thailand and Hong Kong.