Univision’s streaming ambitions are growing to encompass a new global streaming service including both free ad-supported and subscription options.
The new service will launch in the U.S. and Latin America in 2022 and will benefit from full access to the content library and IP at Televisa, which Univision is acquiring for $4.8 billion. The service will combine existing VIX and Univision Now services along with PrendeTV, Univision’s recently launched ad-supported streaming service. Those services will be transitioned and unified into one global service and brand.
Univision said brand, pricing and launch date details for the service will be announced following the close of the Televisa-Univision merger later this year.
RELATED: Univision acquires Televisa in $4.8B merger deal
The new service’s free tier will include select originals, studio films, Spanish-language titles, an expanded live sports offering and a 24-hour news service. In total the free tier will have more than 100 linear channels and more than 40,000 hours of owned and acquired content available on-demand.
The new subscription tier will include more than 6,000 hours of Spanish-language content and more than 30 original productions exclusively on the service within its first year.
To help with the subscription strategy, Rodrigo Mazon has joined the company as executive vice president and general manager of SVOD, reporting directly to Pierluigi Gazzolo, president and chief transformation officer at Univision. Mazon comes over Univision from Netflix, where he most recently served as vice president of Content. Rafael Urbina, Univision’s executive vice president and general manager of AVOD Streaming, continues to lead PrendeTV and will lead the future free ad-supported tier both in the U.S. and internationally.
“With today’s announcement we are giving an early view into the scale and scope of our streaming ambitions. My partners and I closed on our acquisition of Univision less than six months ago, and I am incredibly proud of the progress we have made to date. With the acquisition and integration of VIX and the launch of the current, early version of PrendeTV, we now have an audience that is more than 7 [million] users worldwide and growing rapidly,” said Univision CEO Wade Davis in a statement. “Pierlugi has brought together some of the best streaming executives in the industry. Michael has built, scaled and globalized one of the most successful streaming products in the world. Rafael has extensive experience scaling large, ad-supported video audiences, and Rodrigo is a pioneer in premium Spanish-language streaming and content. With this team and the resources we are allocating, we will launch a service that is differentiated, high quality and best in class.”