Sales 2023: US$4.928 billion (€4.558 billion)

Overview

"Univision and Televisa enter into groundbreaking merger deal to create a content giant," Variety reported in 2022. TelevisaUnivision holds leading positions in the US and Mexico, the world's two largest Spanish-speaking TV markets. Target audience: over 100 million.

General Information

Headquarters:
Televisa
Avenida Vasco de Quiroga, No. 2000
Colonia Santa Fe
01210 Mexico City, DF
Mexico
Telephone 0052 55 5261 2000
Website: investors.televisaunivision.com

Branches of trade: Free and pay, cable and satellite TV, film distribution, print, gaming, the Club America (football club from the Mexican first division) and the associated Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, one of the world's largest football stadiums with currently 87,000 covered seats
Legal form: Stock Company
Financial year: 01.01. – 31.12.
Founding year: 1973

Univision
605 Third Avenue
New York, NY 10158
USA
Telephone 001 212 455 5200

Branches of trade: Television
Legal form: Private Company
Financial year: 01.01. – 31.12.
Founding year: 1992

Basic economic data TelevisaUnivision (amounts in million US$1,000,000)

	2023	2022
Revenue	4.928	4.626
Profit (Loss)	(867)	(1.507)
Stock price (year end, in $US)	3,11	4,56
Employees	n/a	n/a

Televisa economic data (amounts in million Mexican pesos)

	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016
Revenue	103.512	97.361	101.757	101.282	94.274	96.287
Profit	7.355	302	6.107	7.615	6.578	5.333
Stock price (year end, in $US)	9,37	8,24	11,73	12,58	18,67	20,89
Employees	n/a	43.200	42.900	39.100	39.900	42.200

Univision Basic Economic Data (amounts in million US dollars)

	2021	2020	2019
Revenue	2.841	2.542	2.688
Profit (Loss)	133,7	(23,8)	28,7

Executives and Directors

Management:

• Alfonso de Angoitia Noriega, Executive Chairman of the Board of TelevisaUnivision, Co-Chief Executive Officer of TelevisaUnivision Mexico, and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Member of the Board and Member of the Executive Committee of Grupo Televisa
• Daniel Alegre, Chief Executive Officer, TelevisaUnivision
• Bernardo Gómez Martínez, Co-CEO of TelevisaUnivision Mexico
• Max Arteaga, VP, Global Broadcast Operations of TelevisaUnivision Inc.
• Rodrigo de Pedro Barreto, General Director Videocine
• Jose Luis Fabila, VP of TelevisaUnivision Mexico Networks Programming, Marketing & Research
• Carlos Ferreiro, EVP, Chief Financial Officer of TelevisaUnivision Inc.
• Pierluigi Gazzolo, President of TelevisaUnivision Inc. & Chief Transformation Officer
• Diane Kniowski, President of TelevisaUnivision US Local Media
• Guillermo de la Mora, General Director, Mexico Government Relations
• Jorge Eduardo Murguía, VP, TelevisaUnivision Mexico Production
• Juan Pablo Newman, VP of TelevisaUnivision Mexico, Growth Officer
• Pilar Ramos, EVP, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary of TelevisaUnivision, Inc.
• Juan Carlos Rodriguez, President of Sports Global Enterprises of TelevisaUnivision, Inc.
• Michael Schwimmer, President, Global Platform Strategy & Revenue of TelevisaUnivision, Inc.
• Adam Shippee, EVP, Corporate Development, Strategy and Transformation of TelevisaUnivision, Inc.
• Donna Speciale, President of TelevisaUnivision US Advertising Sales & Marketing
• Jose Tomás, Chief Administration Officer of TelevisaUnivision, Inc.

Board of Directors:

• Alfonso de Angoitia Noriega, Executive Chairman of the Board of TelevisaUnivision, Co-Chief Executive Officer of TelevisaUnivision Mexico, and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Member of the Board and Member of the Executive Committee of Grupo Televisa
• Emilio Fernando Azcárraga Jean, Member of the Board of TelevisaUnivision, and Executive Chairman of the Board and Chairman of the Executive Committee of Grupo Televisa
• Alex Clave, CEO of SoftBank Group International
• Wade Davis, Chief Executive Officer, TelevisaUnivision
• Bernardo Gómez Martínez, Member of the Board of TelevisaUnivision, Co-Chief Executive Officer of TelevisaUnivision Mexico, and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Member of the Board and Member of the Executive Committee of Grupo Televisa
• Maria Cristina González Noguera, Executive Vice President, Chief Communications & Public Affairs Officer at Popular, Inc
• Oscar Munoz, Retired Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of United Airlines Holdings
• Gisel Ruiz, Board of Directors of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. and Vital Farms, Inc.
• Jeff Sine, Co-Founder and Partner of Raine Group
• Eric Zinterhofer, Founding Partner – Searchlight Capital Partners, LP

History

In Mexico, the television system was established in the 1940s, as had been the case with the radio system, without a strong public broadcasting pillar. Instead, the decision was made to use US standards for both technology and broadcasting organization. The broadcasting laws of 1960 and 1973 contained the most important provisions under which the Televisa Among other things, it describes broadcasting as a public good. Televisa emerged from a merger of Telesistema and Televisión Independente de México (TIM), with the former monopolist Telesistema contributing 75 percent. The new company was owned by four families, some of whom had become wealthy through radio companies and invested these profits in building television networks: the Azcárragas, O'Farrills, Alemáns, and the Garza Sadas. Members of these families took over the most important positions at Televisa. In view of the weak competition from the state-owned "Channel 13," a division of the television stations according to target audience was agreed upon, the so-called "Fórmula Mexicana." This gave the state broadcaster the economically unattractive task of broadcasting educational programs. The media policy framework was therefore extremely favorable for Televisa and favored its rise to an international media group in the following decades.

Important for Televisa was the proximity to the Mexican presidents, who until 2000 were represented exclusively by the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI). In return for media protection, the program was placed at the service of the long-standing ruling party. "For a long time, Televisa and PRI were considered the two centers of power in the country, supporting each other," wrote the Austrian magazine "Der Standard," quoting Televisa boss Azcárraga, the father of current CEO Jean Azcárraga: "We are from the PRI, we have always been from the PRI; we believe in no other formula. And as members of this party, we will do everything possible to ensure that our candidate wins." But also the National Action Party (PAN), which replaced PRI in government in 2000 with candidate Vicente Fox, was able to rely on pro-government reporting, effectively preventing the monopoly structure in the broadcasting sector from being broken up. Televisa developed into Latin America's largest media group, even before Globo, with a presence in all media sectors, from print to online, in addition to broadcasting. 

In June 2007, a ruling by the Mexican Constitutional Court ended a years-long dispute over a new media law for the country of 100 million inhabitants by declaring parts of the new law unconstitutional. Senators had petitioned the court, fearing that the amendment, dubbed the "Televisa Law," would cement the high concentration in the broadcasting market. The Televisa corporation had apparently taken advantage of the high dependence of Mexico's political class on its reporting to have the new media law passed parallel to the election campaign in early 2006. According to observers, the law passed the institutions unusually quickly. It was also rumored that the text had been written by Televisa lobbyists. The draft law had sparked a bitter debate about whether it would solve or exacerbate existing problems with frequency allocation. The previous practice, according to which the president had the sole right to distribute the "public good" of frequencies, had enabled Televisa's dominant position over the past decades. This practice was now to give way to a regulation according to which new frequencies would be auctioned. 

In June 2012, the British daily newspaper "The Guardian" reported on a series of documents it had in its possession that suggested corruption in Televisa's political reporting. According to the newspaper, PRI politician Enrique Peña Nieto (Mexican President from December 2012 to November 2018) paid Televisa approximately $36 million in 2005 and 2006 for almost 200 reports, interviews, and features that portrayed him in a favorable light. It was also agreed to discredit Peña Nieto's political rival, Lopez Obrador. Televisa initially declined to comment on the allegations, citing the Guardian's refusal to provide the documents. In a statement following the report's publication, Televisa expressed doubts about its accuracy. The newspaper then stated that it stood by its version and published the relevant documents shortly thereafter. 

In August 2014, Televisa announced it would acquire the remaining shares of the Mexican cable company Cablecom that it did not already own for approximately $654 million. Then, in September 2014, it was announced that Grupo Salinas would acquire Grupo Televisa's 50 percent stake in Mexico's third-largest mobile operator, Iusacell, for $717 million. In 2017, the increasing popularity of video-on-demand services led to a change in leadership. After the Azcárraga family had led the company for decades, new co-CEOs Bernardo Gómez Martínez and Alfonso de Angoitia Noriega were appointed in October 2017 to bring about a turnaround. 

As early as 2012, allegations emerged that Televisa was abusing its publishing power to collect millions of dollars from state institutions and local governments for broadcasting politically favorable programs. According to an anonymous letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Televisa falsely declared the sums received as revenue from major events held at the Azteca Stadium. To refute the allegations, Televisa hired two law firms. Based on their final reports, the company announced in the summer of 2016 that all allegations were false. The last major corruption allegation was made against Grupo Televisa in 2018. In August, a lawsuit was filed in federal court in New York alleging that Televisa, through a subsidiary, had paid bribes for the television rights to the 2018, 2022, 2026, and 2030 FIFA World Cups. Televisa denied the allegations, saying the payments were "in no way related to any kind of improper conduct."

In April 2021, Televisa announced the landmark transaction announced the merger of its media, content, and production assets with the US company Univision. TelevisaUnivision was created: the world's leading provider of Spanish-language media with the largest library of proprietary content, with production capabilities to operate television and streaming platforms "for the underserved Spanish-speaking population worldwide."

Precursor of Univision was the Spanish-language television station KCOR-TV (later renamed KWEX), founded in 1955 in San Antonio, Texas. In 1961, the unprofitable channel was sold to a group led by Mexican entertainment mogul Emilio Azcárraga Vidaurreta (1895-1972), owner of the Mexican Telesistema, which would become Televisa.

In 1962, Azcárraga and partners launched a second Spanish-language station, KMEX-TV, in Los Angeles. KWEX and KMEX formed the core of the Spanish International Network (SIN), founded by Azcárraga in 1962. SIN was the first television station in the United States to broadcast its programming in a language other than English. From 1963 to 1987, SIN was managed from New York by Rene Anselmo, a native of the United States. After overseeing the launch of KMEX, Anselmo led SIN's expansion in the United States. SIN's Mexican ownership interest was transferred posthumously from Emilio Azcárraga Vidaurreta to his son, Emilio Azcárraga Milmo, in 1972.

1987 was a pivotal year for SIN. Hallmark Cards and Televisa acquired stakes in the network and formed Univision Holdings Inc. Although the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and SIN's competitors had long questioned whether the relationship between SIN and the Azcárraga family was improperly close, they finally approved a sale of the network to a properly incorporated domestic organization. Discussions began with various potential buyers, and ultimately, Hallmark Cards (a 63.5% stake), the private equity firm First Chicago Venture Capital (21.5% stake), and other private investors (15% stake) purchased the SIN stations for $600 million. At the same time, they entered into a relationship with Televisa for the distribution of programming. The network also received a new name: Univision.

In the 2010s, Univision achieved the same ratings as the five major English-language television networks in the USA.

management

Emilio Azcárraga Jean became the first member of the Azcárraga dynasty to step down from leadership in October 2017, but remains CEO of Grupo Televisa. The move was made to counteract the massive decline in Televisa's viewership caused by the rising popularity of Netflix and other video streaming services. 

Today, following the merger of Televisa and Univision, Alfonso de Angoitia Noriega serves as the Executive Chairman of the Board of TelevisaUnivision. He previously served as Executive VP (2003-2017) and Chief Financial Officer (1999-2003). Angoitia was considered Televisa's financial brains and a key partner of owner Jean. He was instrumental in securing a $1.2 billion deal between Univision and Televisa that significantly increased Televisa's access to the coveted Hispanic US market.

Also still important: Bernardo Gómez Martínez. Previously Emilio Azcárraga Jean's most important advisor, this respected intellectual and political analyst from Mexico's business elite is now, among other things, a member of the board of Televisa Univision. His relationship with the Azcárragas dates back to his childhood; and despite Azcárraga's father's opposition, Emilio Jr. brought him into the company immediately after his father's death. 

Business segments

TelevisaUnivision, the world's leading Spanish-language media group, has the largest library of its own content and leading production capabilities (for streaming, digital and linear television, radio).

The portfolio includes Univision and UniMás in the US, and Las Estrellas and Canal 5 in Mexico. Televisa Univision operates 36 Spanish-language cable channels, including Galavisión and TUDN, the No. 1 Spanish-language sports network in the US and Mexico, with the world's largest portfolio of Spanish-language sports rights.

TelevisaUnivision also owns and manages 59 television stations in the U.S. and four channels in Mexico, affiliated with 222 television stations, as well as the Videocine studio and Uforia ("Home of Latin Music"), which has 57 owned or operated U.S. radio stations. TelevisaUnivision also operates the streaming services PrendeTV and Blim TV, which together offer more than 40,000 hours of Spanish-language programming. It also operates the digital offerings of Univision.com, Univision NOW, and other apps.

Current developments

Another report from Variety on the major merger: "The combination of the content of Televisa and Univision, the two leading media companies from the two largest Spanish-speaking markets in the world, has created a company with enormous potential," said Alfonso de Angoitia, executive chairman of the board of directors of TelevisaUnivision, in a statement. "With our attractive financial profile and history of innovation, TelevisaUnivision is poised to revolutionize the industry by delivering the most comprehensive Spanish-language programming offering to viewers around the world."