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29M subscribers, 25M followers: The massive reach of Kapamilya Online Live, explained

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Miguel Dumaual, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/news/02/10/abs-cbn.jpg"/><figcaption>ABS-CBN was denied a fresh franchise by Duterte allies in Congress in July, shuttering its free-television and radio broadcast and resulting in the retrenchment of thousands of workers. FILE/ABS-CBN News</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA — With its free-television broadcast shuttered, ABS-CBN has ushered in a new era on digital, accelerating the platform pivot which it has long prepared for regardless of its franchise’s fate.“All of a sudden, nawalan tayo ng platforms kung saan tayo mapapanood ng ating mga Kapamilya,” ABS-CBN digital content publishing head Richard Reynante said. “We realized that hindi natin puwede pabayaan na ganoon.”“We have to find a way para pagsilbihan ang ating mga Kapamilya, whether via information, public service, or entertainment. We have to reach them in any way.”Aside from Kapamilya Channel on cable, ABS-CBN launched this month Kapamilya Online Live, which livestreams, for free, ABS-CBN programs on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/abscbnentertainment/featured">YouTube </a>and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ABSCBNnetwork/">Facebook</a>.Kapamilya Online Live’s programming is similar to what was seen on ABS-CBN Channel 2, with the familiar Primetime Bida block, for instance, offering on weeknights the likes of “FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano” and the recently launched “Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin.”“The best thing about it is — since digital is really the way to go, and that’s the destination ng media consumption natin — napabilis ‘yung pagpunta natin doon,” Reynante said.“Iyong pagkawala ng franchise natin, napilitan tayo to extend our creativity, extend our vision, and look at our other platforms na puwede natin gamitin.”<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/entertainment/08/20/asiacast.jpg"/><figcaption>‘Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin’ debuted on August 17 as the first-ever ABS-CBN teleserye to premiere on to air fully on digital. ABS-CBN</figcaption></figure></div>Reynante explained the digital shift of ABS-CBN during the recent virtual media conference of “Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin,” which on August 17 became the first-ever ABS-CBN teleserye to premiere and to air fully on digital.The revenge drama, and all other programs on Kapamilya Online Live, stream to an ever-growing online audience. As of August 20, ABS-CBN’s Entertainment pages on YouTube and Facebook — which house Kapamilya Online Live — had some 29 million subscribers and 25 millions followers, respectively.As both platforms are free, non-subscribers and non-followers can also watch Kapamilya Online Live. In fact, the ABS-CBN Entertainment channel on YouTube is accessed by “unique eyeballs” double the number of its subscribers, based on an August tally.“There are 60 million people who are available to watch our programs,” Reynante said, referring only to the YouTube page of ABS-CBN Entertainment.“Depende kung anong klaseng programa ang ibibigay natin sa kanila, at kung magugustuhan nila ‘yun, ganoon kalaki ang audience na available para sa atin.”Kapamilya Online Live, Reynante noted, is geo-targeted to the Philippines, which means only viewers within the country can stream it. The online platforms of TFC continue to serve Filipinos based abroad.A unique advantage of livestreaming, compared to traditional television viewing, is having a built-in venue for interaction. “Mas napapalapit, lumalalim ang engagement,” Reynante said.<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/news/08/18/cast.jpg"/><figcaption>Kapamilya stars Jodi Sta. Maria, Sam Milby, and Iza Calzado interact with viewers during a stream break of ‘Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin’ on August 17. ABS-CBN</figcaption></figure></div>This was seen during the premiere night of “Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin.” While its Kapamilya Channel airing had ads during breaks, its Kapamilya Online Live stream instead saw the lead cast on video call, interacting with viewers live.Watching the pilot as it streamed, Jodi Sta. Maria, Iza Calzado, and Sam Milby reacted to real-time feedback from fans, and even shared trivia about just-aired scenes.While “Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin” has a time slot of 8:40 p.m. on Kapamilya Online Live, fans who miss the streaming of an episode can still view its entirety beyond the live release.This can be done in two ways: through the 24-hour viewing window of Kapamilya Online Live, or via iWant, the streaming platform of ABS-CBN.With Kapamilya Online Live, “the live is seen, then there is a limited viewing time for video on demand,” Reynante said. Currently, that window lasts 24 hours, but ABS-CBN is studying whether to shorten or extend it.“Kung lagpas na ng 24 hours, at ‘di mo siya napanood, then you could catch it in iWant,” he explained. “Kumbaga, ‘yung iWant, iyon ang bahay ng lahat ng programa natin.”This flexibility of access to ABS-CBN content is also a response to the big shift in viewing behavior not only among Filipinos but globally, Reynante said.<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/entertainment/08/20/kapamilya-online-live.jpg"/><figcaption>The programming of Kapamilya Online Live includes past and current ABS-CBN shows. ABS-CBN</figcaption></figure></div>“In broadcast, it’s very linear, by appointment. You have to be there right at that exact time para mapanood mo ‘yung gusto mo panoorin,” he said.“Now that we have enabled digital, our viewers can watch them on appointment… Manonood ka kung kailan mo gusto, at kung ano’ng device ang gusto mong gamitin. Kung gusto nila balikan, they can watch it at their own time. That’s the beauty of it.”This varying availability of viewers to access digital content spells the difference between concurrent live viewers, or those viewing an ongoing stream at the same time, and total viewers.For example, “TV Patrol,” which averaged this week over 100,000 concurrent live viewers on the separate ABS-CBN News YouTube page, will continue to fetch new views beyond the end of its live stream.“Kung mataas ang live viewers natin, mas mataas ‘yan kapag isinama mo ang nag-a-access ng video on demand,” Reynante said. “Probably nasa biyahe sila habang palabas ang ‘TV Patrol.’ Pag binilang mo ‘yung viewers na nanoood one hour after, pag kinuwenta mo lahat ‘yun, they amount in the millions. Milyon ang nanonood sa atin. Hindi lang ang basihan natin ay ‘yung live views.”In the absence of its free-television channel, which had been the primary platform of ABS-CBN for decades, the network is now banking on the continued growth of its digital presence — a significant factor of which is the internet capability of Filipinos.Reynante mentioned the government’s nationwide <a href="https://freepublicwifi.gov.ph/">internet accessibility program</a>. “If that happens, the whole nation becomes internet-capable, we really are on the right track,” he said.“Kumbaga, in the Philippines, tayo ‘yung una sa practice na ‘to, ‘yung nila-live stream natin ‘yung buong channel online. Wala pang gumawa nito, tayo pa lang ang gumawa. We are trailblazing. We are setting the trend in the Philippines. Along the way, may learning curve tayo, and we can see how we can improve.”

“Kung mataas ang live viewers natin, mas mataas ‘yan kapag isinama mo ang nag-a-access ng video on demand. Pag binilang mo ‘yung viewers na nanoood one hour after, pag kinuwenta mo lahat ‘yun, they amount in the millions.”

“Kung mataas ang live viewers natin, mas mataas ‘yan kapag isinama mo ang nag-a-access ng video on demand. Pag binilang mo ‘yung viewers na nanoood one hour after, pag kinuwenta mo lahat ‘yun, they amount in the millions.”

29M subscribers, 25M followers: The massive reach of Kapamilya Online Live, explained

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29M subscribers, 25M followers: The massive reach of Kapamilya Online Live, explained

Miguel Dumaual,

ABS-CBN News

Published August 20, 2020 08:28 PM PHT

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Updated August 21, 2020 12:30 AM PHT

Read More:

Kapamilya Online Live

ABS-CBN shutdown

Richard Reynante

Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin

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