LAS VEGAS - The PBA continued to post significant figures in terms of audience viewership following a successful staging of Season 49.
In a report made before the league Board during its annual planning session at the MGM Grand, television coveror TV 5 and Cignal TV showed an increase in viewership as the three conference format made a return from the previous two-conference showing.
The mid-season Commissioner's Cup had the biggest audience share for the season with a total of 23.7 million over RPTV, TV 5, and PBA Rush.
TNT defeated Barangay Ginebra in a thrilling Game 7 that went into overtime to win the 2nd conference and moved on the verge of a possible grand slam.
The numbers broke the 22.7 million cumulative audience share earned during the season-opening Governors' Cup TNT also beat Barangay Ginebra for the championship which it clinched in six games.
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"We saw a huge increase in viewership in Season 49. And this has a lot to do with us establishing the PBA's new home which is RPTV," said TV5 President Guido Zaballero.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Cup - the final offering for the season - registered 21.2 million as San Miguel regained the All-Filipino title and denied TNT of its grand slam bid.
In Season 48, the Commissioner's Cup got 16.9 million audience share from its airing over RPTV, PBA Rush, Cignal TV, and A2Z as San Miguel won the crown against Magnolia in six games.
Meralco bagged the Philippine Cup as it foiled San Miguel's bid for a back-to-back, and received a 13.7 million audience share over RPTV, PBA Rush, and TV5.
"The PBA remains to be the no.1 brand compared to other sports," stressed PBA Board Chairman Ricky Vargas.
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The same can be said of the Pilipinas Live app where the league also enjoyed a huge number of viewership of 26 million total watch time for the Governors' Cup, 36 million in the Commissioner's Cup, and another 36 million in the Philippine Cup..
That was up from the 7.9 million total watch time for the Commissioner's Cup and 7.4 million in the Philippine Cup during Season 48.
In the social media account of the league, a total of 1.8 billion views were registered from a combine share by both YouTube and Facebook from November to July. (RG)
