MANILA, Philippines – The showbiz trio of Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto, and Joey de Leon (TVJ) and other Dabarkads (Eat Bulaga mainstays) are moving to TV5, after signing a deal with Manny Pangilinan’s MediaQuest Holdings Incorporated.

“Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto, Joey de Leon, and other hosts of Eat Bulaga have found their new home in TV5,” announced Cignal TV, one of the media assets of businessman and sports patron Manny V. Pangilinan’s MediaQuest, on Wednesday, June 7.

“We are thankful to our friends at MediaQuest for this fresh start. Dahil sa ating mga Dabarkads na naging Kapatid, tuloy pa rin ang tuwa’t saya na aming dala (Because of our Dabarkads who are now Kapatid, the laughter and happiness we bring will continue),” Sotto, who led the negotiations with other networks, said in a press statement released by MediaQuest.

MediaQuest said the agreement with TVJ and the Dabarkads is to “produce content for TV5 and other MediaQuest platforms.”

The Kapatid network is now the second biggest next to GMA Network Incorporated (GMA), and MediaQuest has other media assets that can help jumpstart their new show. Another option Sotto considered was to move to the Iglesia channel, NET25, where he, brother Vic, and De Leon have their own respective shows.

Pangilinan also leads telco giant PLDT Incorporated, which can promote TVJ’s new show in a big way through its wireless business SMART. Cignal TV is the Philippines’ number one cable TV provider, and it also transmits digital channels to analog TV sets.

MediaQuest also has a 24/7 station, Sari Sari Channel, a partnership between Cignal TV and Viva Entertainment that airs on Cignal TV and Cignal Play.

MediaQuest also owns daily broadsheets The Philippine Star and business paper BusinessWorld, which have their respective news websites. The Philippine Star has a competitive entertainment portal, latestchika.com

Aside from TVJ, among the other Dabarkads who will bring much-needed “star power” – and eyeballs – to TV5 are social media queen Maine Mendoza, Paolo Ballesteros, Ryan Agoncillo, and Vic Sotto’s wife, Pauleen Luna. Luna posted a video on her Instagram today about the transfer to TV5.

“I’m honored that these pillars of the Philippine entertainment industry have agreed to work with us. Our partnership strengthens our ability to continue to deliver the best for Filipino viewers here at home and all over the world,” Basa said.

TV5 is on a second attempt at improving its ratings by improving its entertainment content, following a failed move to become sustainable with sports and news programs under its former head, basketball coach Chot Reyes.

The transfer will likely boost the audience reach and ratings of TV5, the metrics that advertisers look at when placing TV ads.

TVJ left Eat Bulaga! producer TAPE Incorporated (TAPE) after a bitter dispute with its owner, the Jalosjos family, led by its chairman and majority owner, ex-convict and former Zamboanga del Norte congressman Romeo Jalosjos Sr. The production company has a blocktime agreement with GMA for the noontime slot until end of 2024.

After four days of showing Eat Bulaga! replays, TAPE finally aired a live show on Monday with Paolo Contis, Buboy Villar Alexa Miro, and the Legaspi twins. All are under GMA’s Sparkle Artist Center except for singer-actress Miro. Miro is handled by Tyronne Escalante Artist Management.

The question of who can use the Eat Bulaga! trademark for entertainment is still pending with the Intellectual Property Office (IPO). Sotto has insisted that TAPE only has the license to use it for merchandising, not for a television show.

“The creators are the owners, whether copyrighted or not…. At the moment of creation, you are the owner,” Sotto told CNN Philippines on Monday, June 5.

The show’s name is from the kid’s game, “Eeet…bulaga!” (Eeet…surprise!), which became Eat Bulaga! since the program airs at noon when people have lunch. It was created by comedian De Leon. – Rappler.com