Bidding process The
Associated Broadcasting Company (ABC) had
broadcast PBA games since
2004 on its
VHF Channel 5, succeeding the failed
NBN and IBC consortium which left the league in debt. ABC's current contract would expire at the end of the
2007-08 season, so the league began to accept bids for the next contract. ABC, the
ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation (through ABS-CBN Sports), and the
Solar Entertainment Corporation emerged as frontrunners. ABS-CBN has served as the official broadcaster of
UAAP basketball games since 2000. As part of its bid for the contract, ABS-CBN organized a charity exhibition game which aired on
Studio 23, featuring PBA alumni from the
Ateneo Blue Eagles and the
De La Salle Green Archers. Solar Entertainment had recently begun a partnership with
RPN to provide programming for the network, primarily in response to a carriage dispute with ABS-CBN-owned
cable provider
Sky Cable; which saw 6 of its networks (including its sports channels
Solar Sports and
Basketball TV) pulled from its systems in January 2008. The backing out of ABC narrowed down the field to two possible broadcasters; ABS-CBN (who would broadcast games on its main network and
Studio 23), and Solar Entertainment (who would air games on
Basketball TV and RPN, which Solar then operated under the on-air brand C/S 9).
GMA Network was also reportedly planning to bid but backed out; it however denied that they offered a bid. Another bidder eventually came into force, the Makisig Network; which would air the games on
Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation's
DZTV-TV. However, it was reported that both ABS-CBN and Solar submitted identical bids to the PBA Board: ₱160 million for the first year, ₱168 million for the second and ₱170 million for the third year (compared to ABC's ₱70 million for its fifth year). PBA Chairman
Tony Chua of
Red Bull Barako pushed the board to come out with a decision as soon as possible; former PBA chairman Ricky Vargas of the
Talk 'N Text Phone Pals, a supporter of the ABS-CBN bid, said that money should not be a deciding factor. Also, Chua announced that
Nielsen Media Research would research the comparative reach, demographics and audience share of both bids and present their findings to the PBA board. After receiving Nielsen's data, another provider, Mind Shares, was consulted. By this time, the bids were now slightly different: Solar's bid was ₱31 million greater than the amount ABS-CBN offered for the first three years of the contract, while ABS-CBN offered a four-year package with the option to sign a three-year contract-extension at the end of the initial deal, with Solar a straight-up three-year deal. ABS-CBN backed out its bid after receiving a solitary vote in the 9-member board. However, Solar Sports did not automatically clinch the bid outright since the league was "insisting on a lockout to protect business interests of its team members". It was revealed that, according to Mind Share, if the PBA aired on RPN, it would rate 7.9%, while if it aired on Studio 23, it would rate 1.8%, "without taking into consideration the tremendous cross-promotions boost that would immediately impact on ratings under an ABS-CBN partnership." This caused Solar Sports to be the
de facto front-runner.
Solar and the PBA On May 27, 2008, the PBA announced that Solar Sports had won the rights with a deal reportedly worth ₱508 million. Aside from live games aired on RPN, Solar would provide additional coverage on its
Basketball TV cable channel. During an October 15, 2010, double-header during the
Philippine Cups' elimination round, Solar's satellite equipment experienced multiple faults, including alleged problems with the encoder and power amplifier. These technical problems caused intermittent interruptions to the telecasts, and forced a game between the Meralco Bolts and the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters to be aired on Basketball TV the next day on
tape delay. The technical problems resulted in commissioner
Chito Salud issuing a ₱3,000,000 fine to Solar for not broadcasting a game live, a condition of the network's contract with the league. In a meeting with the PBA's board, Solar also promised that it would take steps to improve the quality of its telecasts and prevent such issues from occurring in the future.
Move to Studio 23 In December 2010, Solar Entertainment announced that they would be seeking a new broadcast television partner for its PBA coverage due to a planned relaunch of the Solar TV network, with a new lineup aimed more 'feminine' programs (resulting in the dropping of all other sports programming from its lineup). Solar executives held meetings with representatives from
ABS-CBN, the
GMA Network, and the
Associated Broadcasting Company in order to gauge interest in picking up the package, while commissioner
Chito Salud made a statement on December 2 that the PBA board's only concern would be Solar's commitment to the rest of their contract with the league. On December 12, Salud announced that the PBA's Board of Governors officially approved Solar's request to find a new broadcasting partner. On February 8, 2011, the board approved a proposal made by Solar Sports to produce PBA telecasts to air on
ABS-CBN's
Studio 23 network for the remainder of their contract with the league, beginning with the
2011 Commissioner's Cup.
Peter Musñgi, vice president of ABS-CBN's sports department, applauded the decision, considering it a "vote of confidence" for Studio 23 and
ABS-CBN's sports division as a whole. Solar declined to renew its contract beyond the 2011-12 season.
Sports5 and
AKTV became the new official broadcasters of the PBA following the
2011 Governors' Cup. Solar aired on
Studio 23 it is the last PBA games during the Game 7 of the
2011 Governors' Cup finals between the
Petron Blaze Boosters and the
Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters. Sev Sarmenta, Andy Jao and
Quinito Henson were the commentators for its last run. ==Commentators==