Univision Officially Sunsets Fusion TV, its Millennial Latino-Themed Cable Network
Pour one out for another small cable channel meeting its demise.
According to Univision, Fusion TV has officially ceased operations as of December 31, 2021, after eight years on the air. Fusion TV described itself as “championing a young, diverse, and inclusive America with coverage from the award-winning Univision news team, documentaries, and factual entertainment.”
The channel’s content focused mostly on Latino millennials and covered current events, lifestyles, pop culture, and more. Fusion TV marked Univision’s first real attempt at an English-speaking brad — which obviously didn’t work out.
“As a company and a brand, Univision is committed to serving Spanish-language audiences, currently in the U.S. and soon globally with the launch of our streaming service in 2022,” the company said. “To continue delivering on that mission, our sole focus will be on this growing audience – currently nearly 600 million strong – and, to that end, we ceased operations of English-language network Fusion TV on December 31, 2021. With this renewed direction under our new leadership, Univision is doubling down on its focus and strategic investments to fill the need for in-language and in-culture content for Spanish-speaking audiences around the world.”
Fusion TV was not the only casualty of the new year. NBC Sports Network was also sunset after 26 years on the air as NBC consolidated its linear presence. Now, USA Network will assume the linear rights that were held by NBCSN, while NBC will also move certain sports programming to Peacock, its video streaming service. This includes Premier League soccer, NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series races, Horse Racing, and more.
If not even live sports can save a linear cable channel, what hope do other, non-sports channels have? Could we see another niche cable channel rebranded as a digital-only channel in the same way El Rey Network was revived by Cinedigm as a streaming service? How many is too many niche streaming channels? We may find out the answers to these questions throughout 2022 if the year’s early days are any indication.