TelevisaUnivision Acquires Spanish-Language Streamer Pantaya; Adds Content to ViX, ViX+
It’s been quite a year for the world’s largest Spanish-language media provider TelevisaUnivision. Until January, Televisa and Univision were two separate companies, but after a $4.8 billion merger, the newly-formed TelevisaUnivision launched a free, ad-supported-video-on-demand (AVOD) service called ViX and an ad-free premium subscription-video on-demand (SVOD) titled ViX+.
Now, the company is enhancing its streaming profile even further, as it announced the acquisition of the streaming platform Pantaya. The service offers Spanish-language series and movies, including a selection of blockbusters and classics from Latin America and the U.S., as well as original series. Pantaya also features a limited selection of movies that are available the same day as their theatrical debut in Latin America. The service’s content will now be included on ViX and ViX+ platforms.
“The strategic acquisition of Pantaya marks an important milestone in our ongoing digital transformation, bringing together highly complementary streaming assets and building upon TelevisaUnivision’s global streaming service, ViX and ViX+,” said Pierluigi Gazzolo, President and Chief Transformation Officer of TelevisaUnivision. “We are excited to welcome the Pantaya team, its content, and its subscribers to our platform, and look forward to working together to provide our audience with an even greater variety of content, as we accelerate our efforts to redefine the global streaming landscape and solidify ViX and ViX+’s position as the largest Spanish-language streamer in the world.”
TelevisaUnivision’s addition of Pantaya content to the ViX platforms comes at a time of expanded Spanish-language viewership across the globe. A report from earlier this year showed Spanish-language viewership was up 11% over 2021, and that 38% of Latinx viewers get their content solely from streaming services.
More companies have begun to pivot their programming to meet that demand. A new, bilingual FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV) service called Nuestra.TV recently launched with over 15,000 hours of programming available. YouTube TV offers a robust Spanish-language bundle of channels, although customers must pay an additional $9.99 per month for the package. If demand for Spanish programming continues to rise, however, it’s highly likely that more companies will make an effort to provide more Spanish and bilingual content.