MediaCorp Launches Block in the Philippines

SINGAPORE: TV5 in the Philippines has begun carrying a two-hour weekday block featuring content from Singaporean broadcaster MediaCorp.

Airing Mondays to Fridays from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m., the block will be dubbed into Tagalog. The deal calls for 520 hours of MediaCorp content to be scheduled in the first year of the collaboration. The deal kicks off with The Little Nyonya and Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd, with the Chinese drama airing from noon to 1 p.m. and the English-language sitcom from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Other dramas lined up include Metamorphosis, Women of Times and The Ultimatum, while the English sitcom slate features Under One Roof.

Doreen Neo, the senior VP of MediaCorp Studios and content distribution, said: “The TV5 time-belt is an excellent platform for our home grown content. It will help establish familiarity and build habitual viewership of our content in The Philippines. This is a great opportunity for us to enter a new market, following our earlier time-belt established in Malaysia."

"The stability and proven track record of MediaCorp will help TV5 stabilize and further strengthen its position in a challenging duopoly environment," added Aris Cebrero, the brand manager for TV5 Young Adults. "Moreover, the high quality of programs that MediaCorp produces will significantly benefit TV5’s programming. TV5 hopes this is the first of many mutually beneficial ventures the two companies will enter into."