TelevisaUnivision on Monday became the latest media company to feel an advertising pinch.
The Spanish-language media giant said it expects second quarter overall revenues to fall year-on-year due to U.S. advertising “softness” and foreign exchange impacts. TelevisaUnivision, set to report Q2 financial earnings on July 22, forecast revenue to come in at around $1.2 billion, compared to $1.25 billion in the three months to June 30 in 2024.
The company has the Univision network, while also building up the ViX streaming platform to chase younger consumers. The ViX service has also added a new ad-supported premium tier.
ViX has faced stepped up competition for marketing dollars after Amazon’s Prime Video, Netflix and Disney+ launched advertising on original programming, and from free, ad-supported streaming TV, or FAST channels.
TelevisaUnivision earlier unveiled talked about plans for its two regional U.S. and Mexican companies to shift into “one global company,” with the legacy linear and streaming businesses combining for a content-first media giant. The media company has also struck a deal with Disney to see TelevisaUnivision’s lineup of networks, including Univision, UniMás, TUDN and Galavisión, launch on the Hulu + Live TV multichannel video service in the U.S. market, as part of its core offering.
And in Mexico, meanwhile, TelevisaUnivision’s ViX streaming service will be offered in a bundle with Disney+.
TelevisaUnivision also said a subsidiary, Univision Communications has proposed a $1 billion debt offer through a private placement of senior secured notes due 2032. The media company aims to use the net proceeds from the offering to help refinance a portion of 6.625 percent senior secured notes due 2027.
