Defunct primetime sports programming block in the Philippines
AKTV (pronounced "active", officially branded as AKTV on IBC) was the primetime sports programming block in the Philippines. Owned and operated by TV5, it occupied the 5:00 to 11:00pm timeslot of IBC; weekend coverage usually began at 11:00 am to 11:00 pm. It started on June 5, 2011, and it ended in May 2013 due to high airtime costs and low ratings.
History
IBC signed a blocktime agreement with TV5's sports division Sports5 to air live sports coverage via its new programming block AKTV.[1][2] It was launched on June 5, 2011, with the AKTV Run held outside SM Mall of Asia in Bay City, Pasay.
Cancellation
However, on April 11, 2013, TV5 announced that the blocktime agreement with IBC would not be renewed, meaning AKTV would cease broadcasting in May 2013. The move was due to high cost and low ratings given by IBC to air over the channel.[3] Broadcasts of the NCAA basketball tournament, and the United Football League were moved to AksyonTV/5 Plus, although Sports5 (now One Sports)-produced PBA games continue to air in the channel until October. IBC, later signed another blocktime agreement with Asian Television Content Corporation, to air a new set of primetime programs under ATC@IBC, which is set to aired on June 2, 2014.[4][5] Until August 31, 2014, the ATC@IBC primetime block was cancelled due to poor ratings and loss of advertisers' support. It is later noted that, despite the expiration of blocktime agreement, TV5 continues to use IBC-13's Broadcast City facilities for sports events including its 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup coverage; as MediaQuest Holdings is a possible bidder for the privatization of IBC-13.[6] However, MediaQuest could not join the privatization bid due to ownership rules and regulations that MediaQuest owns TV5 and AksyonTV.
