BROADCASTING giant GMA Network Inc. has accused long-time rival ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. of false and malicious allegations of television ratings manipulation in a civil suit and is asking for P15 million in damages and fees.

“It’s a civil action for the defamation done by ABS-CBN against GMA. There was [a] series of on the air fabrication of statements imputing GMA 7 as behind the alleged rigging, manipulation of TV ratings in Bacolod City,” GMA Network legal counsel Gener Asuncion said in a press briefing.

The suit was filed with the Quezon City Regional Trial Court on Thursday, by the Kapuso Network, as GMA Network is popularly known, demanding P10 million from ABS-CBN for moral damages, P2.5 million for exemplary damages, P1.5 million for attorney’s fees and P1 million for litigation expenses.

Also named in the suit were dzMM station manager Angelo Palmones and dzMM news manager Alona Magsalas; dzMM reporter Junrie Hidalgo; radio program Teledyaryo hosts Jobert Sucaldito and Cristy Fermin; television program Bandila production head Luchi Cruz Valdez; Bandila executive producer Boyet Agustin; ABS-CBN head of legal department Atty. Maximilian Uy; Bandila host Korina Sanchez; Entertainment Live and The Buzz production heads Malou Santos and Luis Andrada; Entertainment Live executive producer Lani Gutierrez; The Buzz and Entertainment Live headwriter Romel Gonzales; The Buzz executive producer Nancy Yabut; and The Buzz headwriter Ian Reyno.

“In reckless disregard of truth, with malice, and in bad faith, and with obvious intent to defame the plaintiff and ridicule it before the public, ABS-CBN distorted, spliced off, and suppressed the accurate and complete statements of Ms. Reforma and made it appear that plaintiff rigged, manipulated the ratings in Bacolod City and that Ms. Reforma admitted in that ambush interview that plaintiff was behind ratings manipulation,” GMA Network said in the complaint, referring to a dzMM interview with AGB Nielsen managing director Maya Reforma. dzMM is ABS-CBN’s radio station.

“Plaintiff has never engaged in manipulation or rigging of ratings in Bacolod City, as alleged by ABS-CBN, or elsewhere to obtain or secure its No. 1 status in the ratings,” GMA Network said in its complaint.

For its part, ABS-CBN in a statement on Thursday said they were disappointed but not surprised by GMA’s reactions to the discovery of TV ratings manipulation.

“It appears that they want to prevent the media from mentioning GMA 7 in connection with cheating in the ratings. AGB-Nielsen Media Research general manager Maya Reforma identified GMA 7 as the broadcast network behind the efforts that compromised panel homes in Bacolod,” it said.

ABS-CBN added in its statement that in Reforma’s affidavit submitted to the QCRTC, she admitted that GMA was involved in “tampering” with the panel homes and that “79 of the 532 homes interviewed from the six cities were confirmed by panel homes to have been exposed to efforts by GMA.”

“Let’s remember that the issue here is about having a clean TV ratings process, the reason we filed a civil case against AGB-Nielsen Media Research. Filing defamation charges against ABS-CBN diverts attention from the real issue. We are confident that the truth will come out,” the Lopez-owned media outfit said.

On December 20, ABS-CBN scored a victory against ratings agency AGB after it obtained a temporary restraining order from the Quezon City court that halted AGB’s TV ratings surveys.

In a three-page decision penned by Judge Charito Gonzales, it was stated that AGB managing director Maya Reporma admitted knowing about the alleged attempt to tamper with the television audience measurement (TAM) data by another network but made no action.

“Under the Service Contract between the parties, the defendant [AGB] was under obligation to ensure that confidentiality of the panel homes and accuracy and reliability of the TAM data. Reporma, the managing director of the defendant even admitted that there was tampering of panel homes which was the subject of an investigation,” Gonzales said.

The court specifically ordered AGB to stop its nationwide data gathering activities from corrupted home panels and not to deliver, release or make known the TAM data to clients or the general public within 20 days from the issuance of the order.

BROADCASTING giant GMA Network Inc. has accused long-time rival ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. of false and malicious allegations of television ratings manipulation in a civil suit and is asking for P15 million in damages and fees.

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