MANILA — Once due to close amid the double crises of the pandemic and the broadcast shutdown of ABS-CBN, the network’s ticketing portal KTX successfully transitioned as a leading virtual venue for concerts, movies, and other events over the course of the coronavirus lockdown.

Prior to the pandemic, KTX was an online platform where Kapamilya fans could secure tickets to live shows or studio tapings of ABS-CBN programs, such as “ASAP Natin ‘To” and “It’s Showtime.”

That function was rendered obsolete with the prohibition of mass gatherings starting March 16, 2020, among other health and safety protocols that have eased but still largely remain in place a year on.

The subsequent broadcast shutdown of ABS-CBN was the proverbial nail in the coffin for KTX, as it counted among the several groups — consisting of thousands of employees — that the network was forced to retrench, resulting from its franchise denial. KTX was scheduled to close by the end of August 2020.

But then, “Hello, Stranger” happened. As its swan song of sorts, KTX sold tickets to the finale fan conference of the hit boys’ love series. The hours-long program was held entirely online — a virtual gathering of the cast and the series’ international fans.

“And it was so well attended,” Gian Carlo Vizcarra, business development and operations head of KTX, said.

“So they saw the potential of KTX,” he said, referring to ABS-CBN executives. “Tumaya sila fully. And the rest is history.”

HELLO, BLUEPRINT

The success of “Hello, Stranger” earned KTX the green light to re-launch as a digital venue. For producer Black Sheep, the turnout was an indication that paying for online content was becoming an option for many, nearly five months into the lockdown at the time.

“Ito na ‘yung time that we were testing the appetite of the people sa pag-pay ng content,” Black Sheep head Kriz Gazmen said. “Naisip namin na maganda siyang small experiment if people are going to be interested, and if people are going to pay.”

Aside from the live interaction with the cast, a big draw of “Hello, Stranger’s” fan conference was the advanced screening of its finale, three days ahead of its free streaming on YouTube and Facebook.

“When we sold the tickets, nagulat kami talaga sa dami ng bumili! KTX even wasn’t used to that kind of number. Nagulat kami, kasi it was from cities from around the world. Naging international din ‘yung audience niya,” Gazmen said.

“Doon namin na-realize na we can actually sustain this. Puwede talaga nating gamitin ‘yung KTX. And I think that was the precursor to how KTX transformed into the platform that it is right now.”

KTX re-branded officially only a month later in September 2020 — not only as a digital cinema for the likes of “Hello, Stranger,” but as an online venue for concerts. At the time, musicians had been holding fundraising streams left-and-right on Facebook and YouTube, with viewers free to drop in and out of the program.

That was the closest music fans had to a concert at the time.

“Wala siyang precedent during that time,” Vizcarra said of KTX hosting concerts virtually, for a paying audience. “KTX was in a league of its own offering digital events. Everything was so unstable.”

At that point, KTX had been testing the waters as a concert venue with the offerings of K Brosas, Jed Madela, and 4th Impact. But the turning point, Vizcarra recalled, came in October 2020, when it hosted Daniel Padilla’s “Apollo.”

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If “Hello, Stranger” afforded KTX a fresh chance to reinvent, “Apollo” introduced the platform to a wider audience — including prospective partners and producers — as a virtual space for events.

“It was basically ‘Apollo’ that launched the new KTX,” he said.

Another Padilla project also had “phenomenal attendance” in the same month — the premiere of the 13-part digital series “The House Arrest of Us” co-starring Kathryn Bernardo. The event followed the blueprint “Hello, Stranger” had drawn two months earlier: virtual interactions with the cast sandwiching the screening of an episode, in this case, the pilot.

The event formats for both for “Apollo” and “The House Arrest of Us” proved so popular, that, “from then on, tuloy-tuloy na, everybody got interested,” Vizcarra said.

“Magandang sign iyon sa mga producers and artists that, ‘Hey, puwede niyong gawin ‘to to make your businesses more stable.’ It was a good indication na meron pa rin namang opportunities during this pandemic.”

Since then, KTX has become a leading virtual venue for concerts, movies, and even theater productions and digital festivals.

‘UPWARD TREND’

While KTX has made significant strides as a digital events platform, there remains a curve of adjustment for both content producers and consumers a year into the “new normal,” observed Vizcarra.

For producers, the adjustment has been setting expectations given the new “realities of the trade.”

“Naninibago sila. Maski na film producers, nagi-expect sila ng kita na tulad ng sa sinehan. In the cinema, bibili ka ng limang ticket para sa limang tao. Ito, bibili ka ng ticket for the five of you already. The setting of the expectations was a struggle,” he said.

KTX and concert producers have had to fine-tune live streaming. Concerts held inside ABS-CBN studios, such as Padilla’s “Apollo” and Regine Velasquez’s “Freedom,” have tried-and-tested systems in place.

While earlier on, concerts held remotely proved more challenging to stream seamlessly, KTX has since found suppliers that can address that concern, according to Vizcarra.

In either case, he said: “All the tests are there. Iti-test mo kung ‘yung feed is okay, ‘yung integration of the platforms is swak. It’s always tricky, lalo sa Pilipinas na mahirap ang internet.”

Consumers, meanwhile, have steadily become more accustomed to paying for online content, Gazmen said, noting the growing ticket sales of ABS-CBN Films offerings on KTX.

Black Sheep, led by Gazmen, is part of ABS-CBN Films, which has been releasing its titles digitally via Cinexpress during the pandemic. Cinexpress is comprised of Sky PPV, Cignal PPV, TFC IPTV, iWant TFC, and KTX.

“When we were observing the numbers, there was really an upward trend,” Gazmen said. “Nakita talaga namin, dumadami at dumadami na ‘yung number of people who are watching via online platforms.”

Particularly “encouraging” were the numbers of “Four Sisters Before the Wedding,” the film prequel released in December 2020, Gazmen said. “Ang laki ng ticket sales niya. So sabi namin, ‘Okay, this can be viable as a distribution platform.’”

The movie sequel of “Hello, Stranger,” released in February 2021, then became the highest grossing film title and premiere event on KTX.

“We knew that we had a market, we knew that we had a lot of fans. Pero siguro we didn’t expect to become this overwhelming,” he said, noting that the record was broken as early as the advance-selling period.

While “Hello, Stranger’s” performance as a digital release exceeded their expectations, Gazmen pointed out that the online market is a different and much smaller demographic than the traditional cinema audience.

“I wouldn’t stay it’s a norm yet,” he said, referring to consuming content online. “But I think for the more upscale, or for more digital audience, it has already become kind of a norm. Alam nila na 'pag may bagong pelikulang Pilipino na lalabas, they can access it through these platforms. Generally, if we’re looking at the bigger Filipino market, malaki pa ‘yung kailangang audience.”

Lack of reliable access to internet connection, factoring in Wi-Fi speed and data cost, remains the biggest barrier for most, the film producer said. Those that do have stable connection, are not necessarily familiar with online transactions.

“Kailangan talaga ng adjustment,” Gazmen said. “Maraming taong intimidated sa digital platforms na ‘to — ‘yung trust nila sa online payment, intimidation sa technology, we encountered that a lot.”

“The hardest part was the shift of teaching people to consume content na paid,” Vizcarra said. “Of course, merong mga naturally tech-savvy people. The question is: Sanay ba sila magbayad at kailan sila magbabayad? For the older market naman, how do you do teach them to buy tickets online, watch [content] online?”

The function of gifting tickets, a newly rolled out feature of KTX, may help address that concern, Vizcarra said.

But as cinemas remain shuttered indefinitely, Gazmen surmised that Filipino movie fans will be “forced to adapt” eventually.

WHAT NEXT, AFTER LOCKDOWN?

While its digital audience grows, KTX is also not discounting the possibility of concert venues and cinemas opening doors again, once the pandemic is put under control with enough vaccinations.

KTX, Vizcarra said, would then become the home of “blended events,” where a concert in Quezon City in Luzon, for example, can also be watched by fans in Mindanao, or even overseas, at the same time.

“That’s the dream. KTX hopes to continue serving the public na wala doon sa venue, nakakasabay pa rin nila ‘yung mga nasa Maynila. It’s a service that we’re providing now. Walang barrier of venue, sabay-sabay tayo nakakapanood, whether na sa Manila ka o na sa ibang bansa ka,” he said.

“We think that blended concerts — streaming and live — will happen in the next episode of our lives. Kasi hindi mo na maaalis ‘yung habit na ginawa ng pandemic, e. At the end of the day, panalo ang audience. They can choose to watch it live or at the comforts of their home. I think that’s the contribution of KTX in the scheme of consuming content.”

Gazmen sees a similar situation for cinema, pointing out that streaming content online became an even more prevalent habit among many Filipinos during the lockdown.

“Feeling ko na-habituate na talaga ‘yung mga tao,” he said. “Gusto talaga nila ng video-on-demand. The moment they want to watch something, it’s there. I have a feeling na even in the future, when things get better, baka maging Hollywood model na rin tayo na even when there’s theatrical, baka mag-simultaneous pa rin siya sa KTX.”

“Even if things get better, ma-vaccinate na tayo and all that, ‘yung iba either na habituate na or ‘yung iba takot pa rin lumabas. We also have to also accept that things have changed, that we’re not going back to the past anymore na ito lang talaga ang mode of consumption.”

For now, KTX remains the viable alternative to physical releases, with numerous firsts still happening for the the platform, according to Vizcarra.

For one, it has ventured into line-producing concerts, starting with Side A’s in January. That’s aside from organizing, and not just hosting, private events, like debuts and corporate functions.

The concert list also keeps growing. Acts lined up in the coming year include EZ Mil, Ogie Alcasid and Ian Veneracion, Sheree, Martin Nievera and Lani Misalucha, Neocolours, Sam Concepcion, Morissette, Andrew E, and Joey Albert.

In a milestone for KTX, it has also partnered with a big producer, Viva Entertainment, to present Sarah Geronimo’s “Tala: The Film Concert” on March 27.

Like “Apollo” and “Freedom” before it, “Tala” being held via KTX allows fans to gather virtually, and interact with each other and with their idol. The blueprint set by “Hello, Stranger” half a year prior remains: a pre-show or post-show or both, especially for fans, is held aside from the main attraction.

“That’s what makes KTX different from other platforms, we cater to the most rabid of fans. We are the basically the fan platform for everybody,” Vizcarra said. “That’s the reason KTX is successful, because we know what the fans would love, what the fans of the artist of the genre would appreciate.”

“It gives you something more than just the content.”