It’s Official: PBA Games To Air Live In China

All games of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) will be airing in mainland China through the Pilipinas Global Network Limited (PGNL), a joint subsidiary of TV5 Network Inc. and the Philippine Long Distance Company.

The games will be aired via Hunan World Research Internet Company Limited (HWRICL) to cater to the Chinese audience for viewing and enjoyment.

The first live broadcast officially took place on Oct. 23 at the Intercontinental Hotel Grand Ballroom in Changsa, Hunan province.

In a telephone interview, PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said the contract for the live broadcast of the games would be for one year.

Marcial, in a statement released through the PBA website, stated that this is a good opportunity both for Filipinos based in China and the Chinese to see the local brand of the game.

The PBA is Asia’s pioneering professional league and making it available to the billions of audience in China will be a good step for the league to expand its reach.

This is the first time for PBA to be broadcast live abroad. “This is good,” Marcial stressed.

Last week, the PBA delegation went to China to personally witness the first live broadcast of the PBA as part of the launching of the partnership. Joining Marcial in the China trip were PBA board chairman Ricky Vargas of Talk N Text, Alfrancis Chua, representative of Barangay Ginebra to the PBA board, marketing head Gelo Serrano and PGNL president and chief executive officer Ernesto “Bong” Sta. Maria.

The league met with Mo Yanfei, president of HWRICL.

Al Panlilio, president of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas and board representative of Meralco in the PBA, gave his take on the new development.

“There’s this interest in China to see or watch the PBA games,” Panlilio noted. “It increases the interest in the league. There’s appreciation from China. They see how good the level of basketball is in the Philippines. I’m sure they’re also scouting players from the national team point of view. But as a board member, it gives me great pleasure that (we have a high level) of PBA (games) and countries like China see that.”

For NLEX head coach and former Gilas Pilipinas mentor Yeng Guiao, this is a good opportunity for the PBA to reach the Chinese audience on the heels of the controversial fallout of the National Basketball Association (NBA) with China, a strong supporter of the world’s biggest basketball entertainment.

Earlier this month, China decided to stop carrying the NBA games following a controversial tweet made by Houston Rockets team manager Daryl Morey on Hong Kong, where anti-China demonstrations have been going on.

But the deal on PBA games’ airing in China happened early on. It was last June 26 when PGNL and HWRICL signed the partnership for the exclusive live broadcast of PBA games in mainland China.

PGNL was established eight years ago and distributes content in the United States, Canada, Australia, Middle East and several other areas. Sta. Maria disclosed that the PBA is PGNL’s number one property and its most in-demand content throughout the world.

Sta. Maria said PGNL arranged a test run of live PBA games to HWRICL and the transmission was a success.

“I think this is a good opportunity for the PBA,” Guiao said in a telephone interview. “China might be looking at the next best thing after the NBA, which is the PBA.”

According to Guiao, this is indeed good news for the PBA, the second oldest professional league in the world, since the games will be available in the world’s most populous country.

“Maski nga mga .5 percent lang ng audience nila ang makuha natin, malaking bagay na. This will give China an opportunity to see us and their basketball program to scout us,” Guiao said. “It is also one way of showing the stronger ties between the two countries.”

He also expressed hopes for the Chinese Basketball League to be carried here. “There are a lot of NBA players seeing action there, so napakataas ng level ng competition. This is also one way of scouting them.”

For his part, coach Norman Black said: “I believe that (partnership) indicates the respect that the Chinese have for the Filipino brand of basketball. It also shows that they view the PBA as a very credible form of entertainment.”

“Hopefully, the relationship between the two basketball associations will continue to grow, moving into the future,” Black said in a text message.

Black burst onto the PBA scene in 1981 as import of Tefilin. Since then, he has played as reinforcement of San Miguel Beer, where he won multiple championships, and Great Taste and Alaska before becoming one of the most successful coaches in league history.

But prior to his gig as coach, Black worked on television as scriptwriter and analyst of PBA games.

Rain or Shine team owner Raymond Yu and Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone are optimistic that the development will entice the local crowds not just to watch the PBA on television but also right at the venues.

“This is an added venture for the PBA. We can cater now to a different audience, but at the same time, there are also Filipinos based in China, so they need this form of entertainment,” Yu said in a telephone interview.

Cone believes a change in anything can be challenging, but thinks the PBA’s direction is good and something that the league needs at this point.

“I think it’s awesome that the PBA is constantly looking for ways to innovate. Change has always been a constant in my 30 years in the PBA and change signals growth. I’m proud to be part of the organization that prioritizes the need to grow,” Cone wrote in a text message.