SINGAPORE – Digital media and content marketing company Brand New Media (BNM) and broadcast network TV5 have partnered to launch a Multi-Channel Internet TV Network in the Philippines, to go live in February 2015.
Named 4ME, this brand new media platform will feature original content, produced both in the Philippines and internationally, for a network of lifestyle channels covering food, health, fashion, tech, comedy, travel, home, entertainment, celebrity, sport, outdoor adventure and music.
4ME will be available to view via www.TV4ME.ph anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected device, such as a smart phone, tablet, computer or smart TV.
4ME will be powered by Brand New Media’s award winning ChannelPLAY technology platform for Over-The-Top broadcasting, promising to be a significant innovation for the digital media landscape in the Philippines, for both audiences and advertisers. This digital service will offer advertisers the most advanced content marketing model to be available in the Philippines for deep audience engagement and interaction.
The BNM TV5 partnership will also be establishing a state-of-the-art digital production studio to cater for the high volumes of specialty content required for the emerging digital media industry in the Philippines.
TV5 is the television arm of MediaQuest Holdings Inc., the multi-media organization and investee company of PLDT’s Beneficial Trust Fund. PLDT president Manny V. Pangilinan heads the network as chairman.
“This partnership with Brand New Media reconfirms our position as the No. 1 go-to network for all Filipinos’ multimedia needs. Given TV5’s capacity to produce high-quality content, the programs to be shared around the world via the 4ME multi-channel Internet TV will surely benefit more Filipinos, especially as media consumption skews increasingly towards multiple devices. Aside from being one of the biggest industry milestones in Philippine broadcast history, it is also a key component towards delivering on the multiplatform promise of the Group,” said TV5 president and chief executive officer Emmanuel C. Lorenzana.
Damien Bray, global director at BNM commented, “4ME will take a dominant position in the emerging digital media landscape in the Philippines. Audiences are converging to digital and social media in large numbers, particularly the early adopters and opinion leaders so coveted by advertisers. The content offer on TV4ME will be the most comprehensive in the market with a mixture of new channels for audiences to discover, along with well-known and most-loved content brands. Best of all, it will be a free service with no subscription fee, bringing compelling content to all internet-connected Filipinos.”
In an interview with adobo, Bray noted that the Philippines is seen as probably the biggest market opportunity for BNM in Asia. BNM, whose regional hub is in Singapore, is setting up offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur as well as Manila over the next six months.
“Philippines we see as being probably the biggest market opportunity for us in Asia and I think it’s because you’ve got the perfect combination for the perfect storm. You’ve got consumers, an audience that’s very much ready for this, and the only thing holding you back is the frustration of a dodgy internet connection,” Bray told adobo.
“It’s fair to say that the sun is just starting to rise [in the Philippines] on new media. But you’ve got case studies from more progressed digital markets both in the region and globally that demonstrate clearly the road map of what’s about to happen in the Philippines,” he said.
“TV5 is an organization fervently committed to creating exceptional media content and platforms, and I am thrilled to move forward into the future with them,” said BNM chief executive officer Perry Smith.
“Brand New Media is experiencing strong growth across all our markets globally and this strategic partnership will support our mission to inspire, inform and entertain consumers through the power of great content and digital technology,” Smith said.
