A2Z is a
Philippine
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
free-to-air
Free-to-air (FTA) services are television (TV) and radio services broadcast in unencrypted form, allowing any person with the FTA Receiver, appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring ...
blocktime
broadcast
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum ( radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting began ...
television network
A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or multichannel video programming distributo ...
based in
Quezon City
Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...
, with its studios located in Ortigas Center,
Pasig
Pasig, officially the City of Pasig ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasig), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 803,159 people.
It is located along the ...
. It serves as a flagship property of
ZOE Broadcasting Network
ZOE Broadcasting Network, Inc. (ZOE TV) is a Philippine broadcast media arm of the Jesus Is Lord Church. Based in Ortigas Center, Pasig, it operates a network of television and radio stations each in Mega Manila, Puerto Princesa City, Visaya ...
in partnership with
ABS-CBN Corporation
ABS-CBN Corporation is a Filipino media company based in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. It is the largest entertainment and media conglomerate in the Philippines. It is a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation which is owned by t ...
as its main content provider, through a
blocktime agreement
In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one corporation, company agrees to operate a radio station, radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it ...
. A2Z's flagship
television station
A television station is a set of equipment managed by a business, organisation or other entity, such as an amateur television (ATV) operator, that transmits video content and audio content via radio waves directly from a transmitter on the earth ...
is
DZOE-TV
DZOE-TV, Channel 11 (analog) and Channel 20 (digital), is the flagship television property of ZOE Broadcasting Network. As part of a blocktime agreement, it serves as the flagship station of Philippine television network A2Z. The station is ...
which carries the VHF Channel 11 (analog broadcast), and UHF Channel 20 (digital broadcast; since November 12, 2020). The network's name is an abbreviation derived from the first letter of the names of two parent companies, ABS-CBN and ZOE, the number of the
now-recalled channel frequency of the former (which is now owned by
Advanced Media Broadcasting System
Advanced Media Broadcasting System (AMBS) is a broadcast media company in the Philippines. Its main offices and facilities are located at Unit 906A of the Paragon Plaza Building and at the 3rd Floor of Starmalls EDSA Shaw complex, both in Mand ...
as
All TV
All TV (stylized as ALLTV) is a Philippine free-to-air broadcast television network based in Mandaluyong, with its broadcast facilities and studios located at Starmall EDSA-Shaw in EDSA corner Shaw Boulevard; its transmitter is located at th ...
), and the
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet or Roman alphabet is the collection of letters originally used by the ancient Romans to write the Latin language. Largely unaltered with the exception of extensions (such as diacritics), it used to write English and the o ...
letters from the first letter A to the last letter Z, which means it has everything from A to Z.
Background
ZOE TV-11
DZOE-TV Channel 11, also known as ZOE TV-11 was launched in 1998 after being acquired from
Delta Broadcasting System
Delta Broadcasting System, Inc. (DBS) is a media company owned by El Shaddai leader Bro. Mike Velarde. Its studios and offices at the Queensway Commercial Center Building, 118 Amorsolo Street, Legaspi Village, Makati. It registered at the Secu ...
. It served as the television arm of
Jesus is Lord Church
Jesus Is Lord Church Worldwide (JILCW), or more commonly known as Jesus Is Lord Church (JIL), is a Christianity in the Philippines, Christian megachurch based in the Philippines. It describes itself as a Full Gospel, Christ-centred, and Bible-ba ...
led by
Eddie Villanueva
Eduardo Cruz Villanueva (born October 6, 1946), most commonly referred to as "Bro. Eddie Villanueva", is an evangelist and president-founder of the Jesus Is Lord Church Worldwide (JILCW).
Villanueva was previously a communist- atheist, radi ...
. In 2005, ZOE TV-11 was leased by Citynet Network Marketing and Productions, subsidiary of
GMA Network
GMA Network (Global Media Arts or simply GMA) is a Philippine free-to-air television and radio network. It is the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network, Inc. Its first broadcast on television was on October 29, 1961. GMA Network (f ...
, to serve as originating station for its secondary television networks
QTV and
GMA News TV
GMA News TV (GNTV; visually rendered in its logo in all capital letters as GMA NEWS TV) is a 24-hour Philippine-based international pay television channel owned by Citynet Network Marketing and Productions Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of GM ...
(now
GTV). However, on April 24, 2019, GMA/Citynet announced that it will terminate its blocktime agreement with ZOE Broadcasting by the end of May 2019. The split comes after the release of GMA's 2018 financial report which declared the increasing lease payments that the network contributes to ZOE for the past three years (from in 2016 to almost a billion pesos in 2018). GMA News TV disaffiliated from ZOE TV-11 on June 4, 2019 before the channel signed off the next day.
On June 22, 2020, ZOE TV-11 returned on air and carried the feed of
Light TV Light TV may refer to:
*Light TV, a former name of the American television network TheGrio
*Light TV, a subchannel of Philippine TV station DZOZ-DTV
**Light TV, a related network of ZOE Broadcasting Network
ZOE Broadcasting Network, Inc. (ZOE ...
as part of its test broadcast operations, but on June 26 the simulcast was replaced by
Hillsong Channel
TBN Inspire is an American Christian broadcast television network owned by the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). It is carried on the digital subchannels of TBN's stations.
The network originally launched as The Church Channel, which focu ...
, which is owned by
Trinity Broadcasting Network
The Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) is an international Christian-based broadcast television network and the world's largest religious television network. TBN was headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, until March 3, 2017, when it sold its ...
, before reverting to Light TV feed on July 11. It was rumored to be part of marketing the channel to either possibly continuing the analog simulcast of their sister station
UHF 33 or for
blocktime / channel leasing.
ABS-CBN shutdown and blocktime rumors
On May 5, 2020, the broadcast operations of
ABS-CBN Corporation
ABS-CBN Corporation is a Filipino media company based in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. It is the largest entertainment and media conglomerate in the Philippines. It is a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation which is owned by t ...
, including
Channel 2,
S+A
S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''.
History ...
,
Radyo Patrol,
My Only Radio, and all digital television channels of
ABS-CBN TV Plus
ABS-CBN TV Plus (formerly Sky TV+ and stylized as ABS-CBN TVplus, repackaged in 2021 as ABS-CBN TVplus Digital TV Receiver) is a Philippine ISDB-T encrypted digital terrestrial television provider owned and operated by ABS-CBN Convergence, a ...
and Direct broadcast via satellite of
Sky Direct
Sky Direct was a direct-broadcast satellite subscription television service in the Philippines owned and operated by Sky, a subsidiary of ABS-CBN. Sky Cable had been eyeing for a DBS service and considered on acquiring Dream Satellite TV from Ant ...
and
AMCARA (on June 30) were put off the air after the
National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and
Solicitor General Jose Calida
Jose Callangan Calida (born July 7, 1950) is a Filipino lawyer. He previously served as Undersecretary of Justice under the Arroyo administration, as executive director of the Dangerous Drugs Board, as Solicitor General of the Philippines under ...
issued a
cease-and-desist order
A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not disc ...
demanding ABS-CBN to immediately cease all of its free TV and radio broadcasting upon the expiration of its legislative broadcast franchise. The Congress later rejected ABS-CBN's application for franchise renewal on July 10, and the NTC recalled all the broadcast frequencies (including its now-defunct sister networks
S+A
S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''.
History ...
,
Yey!
Yey! (stylized as YeY! or YEY!) was a Philippine children's pay television channel
A television channel is a terrestrial frequency or virtual number over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in ...
and
Asianovela Channel
Asianovela Channel was a Philippine defunct pay television channel created by ABS-CBN and one of the former freemium channels of ABS-CBN TVplus. The channel aired Filipino-dubbed Korean dramas and Asian films, along with limited imported progr ...
) assigned to ABS-CBN on September 10. Since 2017, ABS-CBN was subjected to disputes with the government of
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Rodrigo Duterte
Rodrigo Roa Duterte (, ; born March 28, 1945), also known as Digong, Rody, and by the initials DU30 and PRRD, is a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 16th president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. He is the chairperson ...
due to several issues such as campaign advertisement controversies during the 2016 election, political meddling, biased reporting, and the legality of the operations of digital television channel
Kapamilya Box Office
Kapamilya Box Office (KBO) was a Philippine pay-per-view television channel. It was initially launched in May 2015 as a pay-per-view channel intended for the historic boxing match between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. It was formerly r ...
(KBO), among others.
ABS-CBN partially resumed its programming through the launch of its cable and satellite television network
Kapamilya Channel
Kapamilya Channel (stylized as Kapamilya channel) is a 24-hour Philippine pay television network formerly known as ABS-CBN Corporation, a company under Lopez Holdings Corporation owned by the López family. The network is headquartered at th ...
on June 13, where it carried ABS-CBN's dramas and live entertainment shows, educational and current affairs programming before the May 5 stoppage.
Since 2017, ZOE Broadcasting Network and ABS-CBN Corporation were reportedly holding talks for possible airtime lease of Channel 11 or acquisition of the network itself if the issues regarding ABS-CBN's now-expired broadcast franchise were ever floated. Reports of a blocktime agreement between ABS-CBN and ZOE began to surface after the Congress rejected ABS-CBN franchise renewal in July 2020, with a tentative schedule offering for broadcasting 20 hours of airtime on Channel 11, and ABS-CBN programs such as ''
Ang Probinsyano
''FPJ's Ang Probinsyano'' (lit. ''FPJ's The Provincial Man''; abbreviated as ''FPJAP'' and internationally known as ''Brothers'') is a 2015 Philippine action drama television series under ABS-CBN Entertainment replacing ''Nathaniel''. Based ...
'', ''
ASAP Natin 'To!'', ''
It's Showtime'', and ''
TV Patrol
''TV Patrol'' is a Philippine television newscast produced by ABS-CBN News. It premiered on March 2, 1987, at the former ABS-CBN television network, replacing ''Balita Ngayon''. ''TV Patrol'' is the flagship national newscast of the network an ...
'' were being shopped to air on ZOE TV. Eventually, all
ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs
ABS-CBN Integrated News and Current Affairs, known on-air as ABS-CBN News (formerly known as ''ABS-CBN News and Public Affairs'' and later ''ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs''), is the news and current affairs production and distribution divisi ...
programs were declined to air on Channel 11 by the ZOE management due to editorial concerns until January 1, 2022, when ABS-CBN News' ''TV Patrol'' officially began the simulcast of its regular edition on Channel 11, marking its return to free-to-air television, almost two years since the newscast made its last broadcast on the original ABS-CBN Channel 2 (
DWWX-TV
DWWX-TV, Channel 2, was the flagship VHF station of Philippine television network ABS-CBN. The station was owned and operated by ABS-CBN Corporation with its studio and transmitter located at the ABS-CBN Broadcasting Center, Sgt. Esguerra Ave ...
).
Launch and broadcasting
On October 6, 2020, through separate statements, ABS-CBN and ZOE TV publicly announced their blocktime partnership and the rebranding of Channel 11 to A2Z, more than a year after being disaffiliated from GMA News TV (now GTV) and five months after the Channel 2 shutdown. The announcement came a day after
Sky Cable
Sky Cable (stylized as SKYcable) is a cable television service of Sky Cable Corporation in the Philippines. It covers areas across the country with both digital and analog cable services, and it has 700,000 subscribers, controlling 45% of t ...
, ABS-CBN's cable television arm, added ZOE TV 11 to the channel lineup.
Meanwhile, after a month of launching of the said new channel, the
National Telecommunications Commission
The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC; fil, Pambansang Komisyon sa Telekomunikasyon) is an attached agency of the Department of Information and Communications Technology responsible for the supervision, adjudication and control over ...
(NTC) was reportedly investigating ABS-CBN and ZOE Broadcasting Network to determine if the said blocktime agreement of the two stations was processed in legal ways.
On November 12, 2020, A2Z started its broadcast on digital terrestrial television. The channel is available on most digital TV boxes, including
ABS-CBN TVplus Digital TV Receiver,
GMA Affordabox
GMA Affordabox is a Philippine ISDB-T digital terrestrial television provider distributed and being marketed by GMA New Media, a subsidiary of GMA Network, Inc. The service distributes digital set-top boxes and USB OTG dongles with free-to-air ...
and
Sulit TV
Sulit TV (, stylized in lowercase) is a Philippine ISDB-T digital terrestrial television provider owned and operated by TV5 Network. The service distributes digital set-top boxes with free-to-air digital TV channels, multimedia player, video r ...
.
Partnership with PCMC and digital terrestrial expansion
On September 18, 2021, A2Z entered a partnership agreement with
Philippine Collective Media Corporation
Philippine Collective Media Corporation (PCMC; officially known in their documents as Philippine CollectiveMedia Corporation) is a Philippine broadcast media company. Its headquarters are located in Makati, with offices in Fairview, Quezon Ci ...
for affiliation to broadcast the network via
Channel 12 in selected parts of Eastern Visayas.
In January 2022, ZOE Broadcasting Network began its expansion rollout on airing A2Z and Light TV outside Mega Manila through digital terrestrial frequency reach via Channel 20 as a provisional authority.
Programming
As part of the blocktime agreement between ABS-CBN and ZOE TV, A2Z's programming primarily includes selected ABS-CBN programs from
Kapamilya Channel
Kapamilya Channel (stylized as Kapamilya channel) is a 24-hour Philippine pay television network formerly known as ABS-CBN Corporation, a company under Lopez Holdings Corporation owned by the López family. The network is headquartered at th ...
and its other sister television networks. In addition, similar to its previous airtime lease with GMA/Citynet for Channel 11, A2Z also features content from ZOE TV's sister station
Light TV Light TV may refer to:
*Light TV, a former name of the American television network TheGrio
*Light TV, a subchannel of Philippine TV station DZOZ-DTV
**Light TV, a related network of ZOE Broadcasting Network
ZOE Broadcasting Network, Inc. (ZOE ...
and its content partners
CBN Asia
CBN Asia or Christian Broadcasting Networks Asia is a non-stock, nonprofit corporation established in the Philippines and Hong Kong on October 1, 1994. Its vision, mission, and ministries are inspired by those of the Christian Broadcasting Netwo ...
and
Trinity Broadcasting Network
The Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) is an international Christian-based broadcast television network and the world's largest religious television network. TBN was headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, until March 3, 2017, when it sold its ...
.
The channel's programming blocks are listed in alphabetical order:
* A2Z Primetanghali — a noontime programming block
* A2Z Primetime — a weeknight evening programming block, featuring local Filipino dramas by ABS-CBN Entertainment, along with news programs.
* Kidz Toon Time — a weekday morning animation block. The block formerly aired every weekday afternoons.
* Kidz Weekend — a weekend morning programming block, featuring animated series and kid-oriented shows.
* Libreng Zine — a movie programming block:
** ''Afternoon Zinema'' — a film presentation of local Filipino films. It was formerly known as ''Primetime Zinema''.
** ''FPJ: Da King'' — a film presentation of classic Filipino action films starred by
Fernando Poe Jr.
Ronald Allan Kelley Poe (August 20, 1939 – December 14, 2004), known professionally as Fernando Poe Jr., and often referred to by his initials FPJ, was a Filipino actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, and politician. His long and s ...
** ''Zine Aksyon'' — a film presentation of classic Filipino action films.
** ''Zinema sa Umaga'' — a film presentation of Filipino-dubbed foreign films.
* School Anywhere — an educational programming block, featuring
Knowledge Channel
Knowledge Channel (abbreviated as KCh) is a Philippine free-to-air television channel owned by ABS-CBN that consists of educational and informative programs. The channel is available on digital TV via BEAM TV, Sky Cable, Sky Direct, Cignal, Par ...
programs. It was formerly known as ''School at Home''.
References
{{Television in the Philippines
ZOE Broadcasting Network
2020 establishments in the Philippines
Filipino-language television stations
Television networks in the Philippines
Television channels and stations established in 2020