MIAMI — The world’s largest producer of Spanish-language audio and video content is moving ahead with the implementation of what Chief Executive Officer Daniel Alegre calls “significant and necessary changes” to the company — “all aimed at strengthening our position for 2025 and beyond.”
The changes are triggered, in part, by the decision of Jesus Lara to leave TelevisaUnivision.
In an internal memo shared by the company with Radio + Television Business Report, Alegre shared that Lara, who in May 2023 had risen to head TelevisaUnivision’s local radio and TV assets in the United States, “has decided to leave the company.”
The promotion of Lara to President of Local Media came after the retirement of Diane Kniowski as TelevisaUnivision’s President of U.S. Local Media. Reporting directly to former CEO Wade Davis, Lara was charged with leading the company’s local TV and radio operations, plus sales efforts associated with those properties, across the U.S.
“I want to express my deepest gratitude to Jesús Lara for his dedication, vision, and contributions to TelevisaUnivision over the past eight years,” Alegre said.
Lara joined what was then-known as Univision Communications in January 2017 as GM of Digital, Content, and Entertainment for its radio division. He previously worked at Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS), serving as EVP of Digital Media Strategy from December 2013 through November 2016. From 2009-2014, he was a Fellow at the Americas Business Council Foundation. Professionally, Lara spent many years at Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN), and was SVP/Music Programming, Marketing and Talent Strategy for MTV Internaciónal from June 2007-July 2011. From 1998-2004 he held several positions at EMI Music, lastly as VP/Marketing and A&R out of the Miami Beach office.
Lara’s arrival at Univision was not a part of the company’s original plan. When hired, Lara took a role originally intended for Alejandro Nieto Molina, an executive from Grupo PRISA’s Cadena SER, a national network in Spain. Nieto’s appointment came in late January 2016; on Feb. 8, Nieto died of a heart attack at the age of 48.
In response to Lara’s departure, a reorganization of the U.S. local teams is transpiring, with Alegre moving forward with the centralization of domestic advertising sales under the leadership of Donna Speciale, covering local and national, linear, digital, streaming, audio, and multiplatform video. “This structure will ensure a single, solutions-oriented point of entry for all our U.S. advertising partners to activate and grow with our audience,” Alegre said in the memo.
A reduction-in-force initiative is being taken as part of the reorganization, with “workforce changes” taking place across TelevisaUnivision this week.
“While these decisions are never easy, we are committed to supporting everyone through their transition,” Alegre said in the memo. “I understand that this will be a challenging week, but I ask for your focus and resilience as we take these important steps toward a stronger and more connected future. Together, we are building a company positioned for sustained growth, innovation, and leadership.”
CUATRO CAMINOS
The changes taking place at TelevisaUnivision, now effectively controlled by Televisa leaders from CDMX, are “designed to reinforce the four key priorities” Alegre outlined.
Alegre, who previously served as President/COO of Activision Blizzard and before that spent 16 years with Google, spearheading its growth in Latin America, first turned to “Integration and Collaboration,” with Televisa and Univision teams “working as one company in everything we do.”
Alegre then turned his attention to content, saying, “We must align our teams and strategies to continue connecting, informing, and entertaining our communities.” From there, “Solution Selling” was singled out, with Alegre stating, “Our partners’ needs are evolving, and we must serve them in ways no one else can in the market.”
Lastly, discussing “Culture,” Alegre shared, “We must rebuild a growth mindset, grounded in innovation, across the entire company.”
As such, a “reorganization of functions” to help TelevisaUnivision achieve greater alignment, focus, and impact is underway.
While sales is being consolidated under Speciale’s leadership, Ignacio “Nacho” Meyer will now oversee U.S. Audio and Local Programming, in addition to his current role managing U.S. Linear Programming.
How will the new structure operate? U.S. local teams were to hear from Speciale and Meyer in separate communiqués. Lara will work closely with the two leaders “to ensure a smooth transition for the teams joining their organizations,” Alegre said.
Meyer has been with Univision since 2011, rising through the organization as the lead for all development and production of non-scripted content, including entertainment realities, daily variety shows and key music awards tentpole events. He rose to President of U.S. Networks in September 2022.
Lastly, “from a content strategy perspective,” Alegre has asked José Luis Fabila to lead all of TelevisaUnivision’s content efforts and to create a newly formed Global Content Organization. “José Luis will ensure that our content investments align with our company’s reach, engagement, and monetization goals, and are distributed efficiently across all platforms worldwide with the right windowing strategy,” Alegre said in the internal memo. “This is an exciting opportunity to elevate how we deliver world-class content to our global audiences.”
Meyer will report to Fabila, as the U.S. Networks Programming and Marketing Teams will be rolled into roles in the Global Content Organization.
Rafael Urbina will oversee digital and streaming operations, performance marketing and CRM, “focusing on driving adoption, increasing consumption, and optimizing the global user experience,” Alegre said.
Olek Loewenstein will continue to lead the sports business unit, collaborating with the Global Content Organization.
‘A PIVOTAL POINT’ IN TELEVISAUNVISION’S EVOLUTION
A TelevisaUnivision spokesperson reached for comment by RBR+TVBR pointed to remarks made by Alegre during his first quarterly earnings call, when he spoke during the company’s Q3 conference call on October 22.
On the call for analysts and institutional investors, as TelevisaUnivision is not publicly traded, Alegre said, “TelevisaUnivision is also at a pivotal point in its evolution. Our next phase will center around further integration and operational optimization.”
Providing insight into what that means, he continued, “We need to drive further integration of our two legacy companies. Each of these has been around for more than 60 years, and while that creates a rich history, catalog and branding recognition, it also brings with it very established ways of operating. We have a real opportunity to shift from two regional companies into one global company.”
This, he said, requires TelevisaUnivision “to evolve from a company with siloed linear and streaming businesses into a content-first company that is platform agnostic. We need to be prepared to connect with our audiences wherever they choose to engage, particularly as cord cutting structurally changes the value proposition of linear. This means more efficient content windowing strategies and evolving our sales and marketing organizations to be more solutions than platform oriented. Our recent experiences with the reality show La Casa de los Famosos in Mexico is a sign of where this company is going with a cross-platform strategy that engaged users in both our linear and digital channels. In linear, we broadcast marquee events in the show during specific programming and online on Vix we had always-on 24/7 content that continued to engage our audiences in unique ways and formats. From a commercial perspective, we were also able to provide cross-platform advertising solutions and integrations for our sponsors. Expect for us to push the boundaries of cross-platform content development further going forward.”
While Alegre acknowledged during the conference call that “all of this will require a significant amount of work,” he added, “[It] will also open up substantial opportunities for growth and improved efficiencies. With this in mind, we are conducting a thorough review of our investments and operations, identifying areas where we can streamline and optimize resources. As a more integrated, multi-platform company, we believe there are considerable efficiencies to be unlocked, allowing us to enhance profitability while maintaining our competitive edge. This focused approach will position us to invest in key growth areas, further innovate, and deliver even greater value to our stakeholders.”
