GMA’s digital subchannel Pinoy Hits goes off air on September 20

This development will leave GMA with only two digital terrestrial subchannels aside from the main channel and GTV.

On Saturday, September 14, GMA Network’s digital terrestrial television (DTT) subchannel Pinoy Hits confirmed that they will be going off the air on Friday, September 20.

In a lower-thirds ticker aired during programs, Pinoy Hits said that it “will go off air on September 20.”

It also advised viewers that they can still watch all their favorite Kapuso shows when they tune into I Heart Movies (IHM) and Heart of Asia (HOA)” channels.

The network, however, did not disclose any particular reason on why Pinoy Hits is being shut down.

However, it is the second of GMA’s suite of DTT exclusives that will be switched off, following the fate of sister subchannel Hallypop, which announced its own closure after four years of operations.

In relation to that, the said Hallypop advisory, released on Monday, September 9, somewhat “teased” the impending dissolution of the Pinoy Hits channel.

Similar to PH’s own message on Saturday, HP only advised viewers to tune in to either I Heart Movies or Heart of Asia and did not make any mention of its other sister.

As of press time, GMA has also not yet revealed any plans to replace both Pinoy Hits and Hallypop.

Pinoy Hits was launched in January 2023 as GMA Network’s fifth subchannel, and replacing the blocktimed DepEd TV channel that used the channel space it occupied until 2022.

At launch, its schedule was immediately packed with simultaneous broadcasts of GMA and GTV original programs, with some re-runs of archived Kapuso content sandwiched in between.

Due to its peculiar programming mix, it is understood that viewership of the channel remained constantly low.

After Pinoy Hits’ closure, the re-runs of past GMA series is understood to revert to the Heart of Asia channel via that channel’s own Filipino drama belt.

As for the other archived content that PH currently airs, such as documentaries and current affairs shows from GMA Public Affairs, viewers might need to consider looking them up online.

Pinoy Hits, along with Hallypop, will both be broadcasting for the final time on Friday, September 20.

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