PBA Entertainment itatatag

Tinapos ng Philippine Basketball Association Board of Governors ang kanilang tatlong araw na planning session sa Macau noong Linggo at nangakong gagamitin ang kanilang tagumpay noong nakaraang season hindi lamang paunlarin kundi magmove-on para sa naghihintay pang taon. Idiniin na hindi lamang uupuan ang tagumpay, may plano din ang board na pumasok sa negosyo ng pagpo-produce ng sariling palabas na kukumplemento sa main products na professional basketball.

Ito ay tatawaging PBA Entertainment, isang 30-minute once-a-week show na tatampukan ng regular coverage sa labas ng ABC-5 at PBA Games.

Ilan lamang ito sa mga napag-usapan at naaprobahan ng board sa kanilang tatlong araw na pulong na ini-host ng bagong league member na Welcoat Paints.

Ang PBA, ang No.1 sports entertainment business sa bansa, na nasa ika-32 season na ay maglalagay ng pangunahing budget na P6 milyon para sa proyektong ito na maging profit-generating sa mga susunod na panahon.

"We’re all excited about this. We’re moving out of the box, we’re moving out of status quo and thinking of things we can do," ani PBA board chair Ricky Vargas. "We want our huge presence in the market felt not only with respect to the people and fans but advertisers.

We’re positioning the PBA as a brand icon. We’re pushing our players to become iconic or be more recognizable. This is why we’re investing in this business," anaman ni league commissioner Noli Eala.

"We’re excited with this entrepreneurial endeavor. We’re branching out. Eventually the goal is to make it profit centered," dagdag pa ni Eala.

Idiniin nina Vargas at Eala, na ang sentro pa rin ng kanilang negosyso ay ang PBA games.

"We’ll not disregard our core business. We’re putting up PBA TV to complement interest in PBA games. Just like the movies, they become stronger because of talk shows," ani Vargas. "The idea is to enhance the league and bring the people to the venue," dagdag ni Vargas.

Sinabi rin ni Eala na ang kanilang TV coveror na ABC-5 ay nangako na bibigyan sila ng 30 minute airtime isang beses sa isang linggo ng libre.

"We’ll put up PBA Entertainment and sell it to advertisers," ani Eala.

Nais ng PBA ng higit na agresibo at dinamikong season na plano din nilang mag-invest ng PBA publication at PBA radio.

"We had our income last season and instead of giving it to the ball clubs, I suggested that we invest it in other businesses," ani Vargas.