MANILA, Philippines?In inking a ?major block-time deal? with Malaysian-backed local firm MPB Primedia Inc., beleaguered network ABC 5 hopes to ?differentiate itself from other channels and post a healthy profit at the same time.?

The deal was announced on Tuesday by the network?s president and chief executive officer Antonio O. Cojuangco, who explained in an official statement that the new partnership is in line with ABC 5?s ?long-term strategy? to make itself ?more competitive.?

It has lost the ?Idol? franchise to GMA 7, but ABC 5 management remains bullish.

Managing director Bobby Barreiro said that the new partner?s parent company, Media Prima Berhad (MPB), is also looking into the possibility of ?licensing? local shows like ?Shall We Dance? to other Southeast Asian countries.

Instead of importing foreign shows, ABC 5 may go into exporting local shows, he said. ?MPB is looking for exportable local programs. It is planning to air both canned and locally produced programs on ABC 5 as part of the block-time deal.?

Barreiro noted that MPB is ?the single biggest player in Malaysia, with interests in print, radio, television and billboard advertising.?

He said MPB is behind four of the six TV stations in Malaysia, and added that the firm?s expertise is ?content creation.?

He said MPB recently put up a ?media fund??which will be tapped in making investments throughout the Southeast Asian region.

Vibrant market

?The first investment was made in the Philippines,? Barreiro said. ?MPB chose the country because its officers noticed that the local advertising industry is vibrant. They see a tremendous growth potential here and recognize the local talent pool, behind and in front of the camera.?

He added that Cojuangco found the team-up with MPB ?exciting,? as it would allow the local network to co-invest elsewhere in Asia.

In a related development, the network has ordered a new transmitter, which will be operational by the third quarter of the year, from Italian firm Electrosys.

?We want our transmission to be at par with the two giants [ABS-CBN and GMA 7],? Barreiro said.

He stressed that these developments ?are geared to make ABC 5 bigger and better? [and] to create wider viewing alternatives for the audience.?

Cojuangco pointed out: ?Our main objective in the long run is to provide the audience with quality programming.?