Radio Philippines Network

Type	Broadcast television network
Availability	National
Owner	Radio Philippines Network
Key people	Roberto Benedicto, Founder
Launch date	June 29, 1960
Former names	Kanlaon Broadcasting System (1960-1975) Radio Philippines Network (1975-2008) C/S9 (2008-2009)

Radio Philippines Network, Inc. (RPN) is a television broadcaster in the Philippines owned by the Government Communications Group. The company operates a broadcast television network known on-air as Solar TV. The network previously used the RPN name on-air, but Radio Philippines Network remains the legal name of the network. This station studios are located at Broadcast City, Capitol Hills, Diliman, Quezon City. With transmitters at Panay Avenue, Quezon City.

[edit] History

[edit] Kanlaon Broadcasting System

RPN was launched and granting the first broadcasting franchise on June 29, 1960 as the Kanlaon Broadcasting System (KBS). Kanlaon is a volcano on the Philippine island of Negros, the home of Benedicto and in 1969, KBS-9 was launched as the home of the first state-of-the art superior color transmission in the Philippines dubbed Accucolor.

[edit] Renamed as Radio Philippines Network

During the 1970s, the network enjoyed popularity when its shows John En Marsha, Flordeluna (which starred the then-rising star Janice de Belen), and Superstar (featuring "Superstar" Nora Aunor) were hits. The station signed a contract with TAPE, Inc. in 1979, and the station became the first co-producer and gave popularity to Eat Bulaga (hosted by Tito, Vic and Joey), which is now the longest-running noontime variety TV show. The title of its nightly newscast, NewsWatch, became the generic name for any televised newscasts because it was the premiere newscast of its day; and its panel of newscasters, led by Harry Gasser, Cathy Santillan and Frankie Abao, Jr. became household names.

During these glory years, RPN became one of the first Philippine television stations to broadcast anime, including Macross, Voltes V, Astroboy, Starblazers (predating ABC by a decade), and later airing Dragonball Z in the mid-90's. It also aired popular series from the United States, like Hunter, Airwolf, and MacGyver; as well as game shows like The Price is Right. However, when the network was held under sequestration after the EDSA Revolution in 1986 (along with IBC 13), it lost ratings supremacy and advertising shares to other networks (notably GMA-7 and ABS-CBN, in succession). By 1989, its local shows John en Marsha and Superstar ended broadcast while top-rating daytime programs Eat Bulaga!, Agila and Coney Reyes on Camera moved to ABS-CBN before the rebranding of RPN 9 to New Vision 9.

Logo used from 1989 to 1995. The word "New Vision" and the '9' logo was gold in color.

After the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution, the stock and assets of RPN, IBC and Banahaw Broadcasting Corporation's BBC-2 were sequestered by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG). President Corazon Aquino awarded BBC, through an executive order, to ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation headed by Eugenio Lopez, Jr. RPN's and IBC's assets were turned over to the Government Communications Group.

It fell into a slump with the resurrection of ABS-CBN and the reformatting of its one-time rival GMA Network. However, the network gained popularity once again in 1996 when it aired the Mexican soap opera Marimar and started a telenovela craze in the country.

[edit] Partnership with Solar Entertainment

On March 11, 2007, RPN began a partnership with the Solar Entertainment Corporation, which began co-producing new programming for the network, such as a local version of America's Next Top Model. The network underwent management changes on December 24, 2007, as Tonypet Albano (undersecretary and executive director of Malacañang's Office of Political Coalition Affairs and Deputy Spokesperson of TEAM Unity) was appointed chairman of the network (replacing Education Undersecretary Mona Valisno, incumbent Presidential Assistant for Education). Undersecretary Robert Rivera was appointed director of the board, while the president and chief executive officer became former senator Orlando Mercado.^[1]

C/S9 logo, as adopted October 2008

Mercado's first major move was to extend their partnership with Solar Entertainment, with programming from their cable network C/S premiering on RPN at the start of the new year. On May 27, 2008, it was announced that RPN would become a broadcaster of Philippine Basketball Association games starting in the 2008-09 season as part of a three-year contract with Solar Sports, who would provide supplemental coverage of the league on their cable network Basketball TV.^[2]

In October 2008, RPN's stations ultimately took on the C/S name as part of their permanent branding, now known as C/S 9 until November 28, 2009.

On November 29, 2009, RPN will have its major reformat and it will known as Solar TV.

[edit] Programming

[edit] Slogans

[edit] List of RPN stations and affiliates

[edit] Television stations

-With several cable affiliates nationwide.

[edit] Radio stations

[edit] See also

• Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation
• National Broadcasting Network
• Philippine Broadcasting Service
• Solar TV

[edit] External links

• Solar TV Official Website
• RPN official website

[edit] References