ESPN says goodbye to the Philippines; replaced by Fox Sports
Starting today, the “da na na, da na na” of Sportscenter will no longer be heard on Philippine TV.
Instead ESPN in Asia has morphed into another leading brand in sports broadcasting, Fox Sports.
And sports junkies have nothing to worry about. In fact, the channel will likely feature even more great sports action.
“We are not going to start from scratch” reassures Fox International Channels VP- Territory Head Jude Turcuato.
“All the properties (programming) will be very similar, if not the same. 80-90% similar.”
Pinoy viewers can still enjoy all four golf majors, two Tennis Grand slams, Motorsports, Football, and two NBA matchups a week and more.
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The distribution of the channel will also be the same; meaning that if a cable operator has been carrying ESPN, it will now show Fox Sports.
Apart from ESPN turning into Fox Sports, ESPN News, which shows purely sports news and not full games, has also become Fox Sports News.
The Star Sports channel will continue to be aired, although Turcuato says that the idea of rebranding it as Fox Sports 2 was toyed with.
Why the switch? Turcuato explains that Disney, who owns the rights to the ESPN brand, has decided to concentrate on the North American market, which is why they are selling their stake in the ESPN Star joint venture to News Corp.
News Corp is Rupert Murdoch's media giant, which as of 2011 was the second-largest media group in the world. In its portfolio are the Star channels, including Star Sports, plus channels like Nat Geo, Fox News, and Fox Crime.
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News Corp also has Sky Sports, one of the leading sports broadcasters in Europe.
Among its roster of 31 channels, FIC also features Fox Filipino and Channel M, a K-pop channel.
Worldwide, FIC properties are shown in 1.3 billion homes, according to Turcuato.
“But among all our channels, this (Fox Sports) is the one I'm most excited about” says Turcuato.
Turcuato used to do Basketball commentary and was famous for his use of the term “Kaboom” whenever a three point shot would hit the target.
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Fox Sports has a long history of innovation in sports broadcasting. They were the first, for example, to have the ticker on the bottom of the screen displaying other sports info.
One thing Fox Sports Philippines will offer is more programming that is tailored to the Pinoy.
“We would be interested in anything the Filipino will be interested in.”
Fox will have a special relationship with the San Miguel Beermen of the ASEAN Basketball League. Every minute of every SMB game will be aired, alongside games from the other teams on Friday nights.
Turcuato promises more locally-produced events as well. In November the European NASCAR circuit will come to Clark, and Fox will cover it.
The channel is also currently in talks to produce and air local Billiards, Poker, and Sailing events.
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Taking the place of Sportscenter will be Fox Sports Central. The magazine sports news show will carry over the same hosts.
Sportscenter is known for its irreverent, humorous style, and Turcuato says viewers can expect more of the same from Sports Central.
“FSC will be even more irreverent and cliche-busting than ESPN.”
Turcuato promises that a locally-produced Fox Sports Central focusing on the Pinoy market is in the pipeline.
“They (Fox Sports Central from Singapore) will take the lead. As soon as they get it right, we'll follow.”
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Fox sees itself as complimentary to free-to-air channels, and not as a threat. He even mentioned that he would be open to doing some UFL shows to complement AKTV's coverage, if a deal can be worked out.
For Turcuato, the mission is simple.
"We want to be THE Sports channel for the Pinoy."
You can follow Bob on Twitter @bhobg333.
