GMA Network, Inc.

History

The company's roots can be traced back to then Loreto F. de Hemedes Inc., founded by Robert "Uncle Bob" Stewart, an American war correspondent. The company started with the launching of its first AM radio station in Manila through DZBB. It went on air on March 1, 1950, using the frequency of 580 kHz of the AM band, broadcasting from the Calvo Building in Escolta, Manila. Its early radio coverage highlights were the crash of President Ramon Magsaysay's plane in Mount Manunggal; the eruption of Mount Hibok-Hibok and various local elections in the Philippines. DZBB became the first radio station in the Philippines to use telephones for live interviews.

Within years since its first broadcasts, the huge triumph of the station and its growing number of listeners made clear the move to modern facilities in EDSA, Quezon City, with the work done in 1959.

On October 29, 1961, the company launched its first television station, RBS TV Channel 7 using local VHF channel 7. In 1963, DYSS Television was launched in Cebu. On May 28, 1974, the company was renamed as Republic Broadcasting System Inc. A triumvirate composed of Gilberto Duavit Sr., Menardo Jimenez and Felipe Gozon took over the company from Stewart at the same year.

In 1987, GMA became the first Philippine network to broadcast in StereoVision while opening their high-end live studio at Broadway Centrum. In 1988, the network greatly improved its signal by switching to its 777-ft transmitter known as the Tower of Power. In 1992, the Philippine Congress passed a law granting the network to operate for another 25 years. The network launched the Rainbow Satellite, making their programs available nationwide and across Southeast Asia. In 1996, the company changed its name to GMA Network Inc.

On April 21, 2017, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte signed Republic Act No. 10925, renewing GMA Network's license for another 25 years. The law granted GMA Network Inc. a franchise to construct, install, operate, and maintain radio broadcasting stations and television stations for commercial purposes, including a digital television system. This franchise encompasses the establishment of corresponding facilities such as relay stations throughout the Philippines.