Univision and Televisa Close Landmark Merger Deal to Create Spanish-Language Content Behemoth

variety.com:

Mónica Marie Zorrilla Televisa and Univision have closed their landmark transaction, a long-awaited merger deal that will now create a Spanish-language media and content powerhouse that will reach 100 million Spanish speakers across the U.S.

and Mexico. The new company, named “TelevisaUnivision,” will bring together intellectual property from Televisa’s four broadcast channels, 27 pay-TV channels, Videocine movie studio, Blim TV SVOD platform, and Univision and UniMás’ broadcast networks, nine Spanish-language cable networks, 59 TV stations, 57 radio stations and the PrendeTV AVOD platform.In short, TelevisaUnivision now owns the largest library of Spanish-language programming in the industry with roughly 300,000 hours of content.

The unified company will also be launching a global streaming service sometime in 2022, which will include both free and premium subscription tiers, and creative partnerships with Eugenio Derbez, Selena Gomez, Maria Dueñas, Mario Vargas Llosa and Santiago Limón.

Both Televisa and Univision had previously announced those plans, as well as the merger agreement, last April. The integration will unlock more potential to tap into the world’s Spanish-speaking population, which represents an aggregate GDP of approximately $7 trillion. “The combination of content assets from Televisa and Univision, the two leading media companies from the two largest Spanish-speaking markets in the world, has created a company with tremendous potential,” said Alfonso de Angoitia, executive chairman of the TelevisaUnivision Board of Directors, in a statement today. “With our attractive financial profile and history of innovation, TelevisaUnivision is ready to revolutionize the industry by delivering the most.