Introducing Daniel Alegre, who succeeded Wade Davis as Chief Executive Officer of privately held Spanish-language media titan TelevisaUnivision one month ago. Alegre has a tech background, and in a role at Activision Blizzard maintained oversight of the company’s international gaming studios and the commercialization of franchises of its video games.
Could this offer a glimpse into the direction the Mexico City/Miami/New York multinational multimedia company wishes to go, considering the growth seen from its direct-to-consumer ViX vehicle? While that may be the subject of speculation, one thing is clear: TelevisaUnivision’s third-quarter 2024 performance in the U.S. bested that of Mexico. It is thanks to retransmission consent revenue gains, and big political ad dollar growth.
For the quarter ending September 30, Advertising revenue for TelevisaUnivision in the U.S. increased by 5% — thanks to election-focused activity. This put the Q3 2024 total for Advertising at $483.1 million, rising from $459.4 million. Subscription and Licensing revenue grew by 6%, to $350.9 million from $329.9 million.
With “other revenue” of $18.4 million, jumping from $17 million, total U.S. revenue for TelevisaUnivision in the quarter grew to $852.4 million, from $806.3 million.
For Alegre, the ex-Yuga Labs head said in prepared remarks that he is “honored to be able to lead this company into its next chapter as we build on the foundations that have been solidified.” He added that TelevisaUnivision is at “a critical juncture in our evolution.” As such, the company will be “laser-focused on integrating our legacy companies into a unified global entity.”
The goal? To evolve into a “content-first, platform-agnostic organization that connects with audiences wherever they engage. Additionally, we will leverage our unique insights into the Hispanic consumer to drive growth and innovation. Together, we are poised to redefine our future and achieve new heights.”
Platform-agnostic is a sign that ViX is the future for TelevisaUnivision’s video content distribution and revenue growth, while the Uforia audio brand continues to seek new ways to expand its audience and ad dollar intake.
In Mexico, ad revenue slipped by 1% to $316.1 million USD, while subscription and licensing revenue declined by 12% to $126.6 million USD. TelevisaUnivision notes that foreign exchange rates produced a 400bps headwind to consolidated total revenue growth.
