CA junks GMA-7's P100-M damage suit vs ABS-CBN

MANILA, Philippines - The Court of Appeals (CA) has dismissed a P100-million damage suit filed by GMA Network Inc. against its rival network, ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp., over a fight involving footage taken of hostage victim Angelo de la Cruz’s arrival in the country in 2004.

In a seven-page decision released Thursday, the CA’s sixth division nullified the orders of a Quezon City regional trial court in December 2007 and July 2008 that reinstated GMA’s civil case against ABS-CBN.

The CA held that Judge Ofelia Marquez violated provision of the Rules of Court when she reinstated the case pending a ruling on the criminal complaint for libel from which the damage suit arose.

“Despite the availability of the separate civil action for damages to the private respondents, however, they cannot file the same in view of the pendency of their criminal complaint. There should be nothing to suspend since the criminal action was filed ahead of the separate civil action,” stated the ruling penned by Associate Justice Florito Macalino. Associate Justices Juan Enriquez Jr. and Ramon Bato Jr. concurred in the ruling.

ABS-CBN broadcasted live De la Cruz’s arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on July 22, 2004 and the subsequent press conference on his ordeal in Iraq. Reuters Television Service carried ABS-CBN’s coverage, based on an existing agreement, on the condition that any footage of De la Cruz’s arrival would be considered by Reuters under “embargo” against its use by other subscribers in the country.

However, being a subscriber of both Reuters and CNN, GMA received the live video feed of De la Cruz’s arrival. GMA carried the Reuters feed in its flash news report simultaneously with its own live broadcast.

ABS-CBN aired a report of GMA’s alleged violation of its intellectual property rights, prompting GMA to charge ABS-CBN and its executives with libel. The complaint was dismissed by the Quezon City prosecutor’s office in 2004 for lack of probable cause.

GMA appealed the resolution before the Department of Justice, but was denied. The network’s motion for reconsideration is still pending before the DOJ.

In November 2005, GMA filed a complaint for damages with the Quezon City RTC, which the court dismissed because a civil case for defamation must be filed within one year. Acting on GMA’s motion for reconsideration, the court reinstated the civil case for damages but suspended proceedings until the libel case is resolved.

Last year, the CA said GMA’s owners and top executives did not violate the intellectual property law since GMA’s act of airing the five-second footage was in good faith since there was no intention to cause injury to its rival network.