‘I Quit, I Quit!’ Boardroom Turmoil Aggravates Univision’s Problems
Clashing egos and feuds over the company’s future have engulfed the U.S.’s largest Spanish-language broadcasting outlet, according to The Wall Street Journal. Is Univision, the company that Jerry Perenchio built with $400 Million and sold for $13 Billion crumbling? By Gene Bryan / HispanicAD

After years of being in the doldrums, U.S. retail spending showed a significant uptick in the first quarter of 2018, and Hispanic communities are a key contributor, according to The NPD Group.
According to Deadline.com, Univision is announcing layoffs this morning, the next major step in the Hispanic media giant’s complete makeover. Numbers are not specified in the company-wide memo, but a source close to the company tells Deadline 6% of jobs will be eliminated. Before the reductions, the company had a workforce of about 4,000 people, meaning the ranks of the departed will number about 250. You can read full article and memo to Univision staff. Source Deadline.com
Republica announced the promotion of Melissa Richter Bartolini to senior vice president and chief strategy officer.
Entravision Communications Corporation announced it has promoted Adam Lichtiger to Senior Vice President of Sales in Washington, D.C., effective immediately.
The consumer packaged goods industry is not reaping the benefits of a fairly robust economy, according to the latest IRI® Consumer Connect survey Even though 55 percent of households say their financial health is good, CPG unit sales growth is anemic and the non-food sector is struggling even more. To examine how consumers’ shopping behaviors and attitudes are affecting non-edibles, IRI also released a new report: “Where’s the Non-Food Growth?”
Fans and brands feeling down after the conclusion of the FIFA World Cup and seeing the hosting of the 2026 event as too far in the future have a respite in the International Champions Cup presented by Heineken.
Mitú laid off about one-third of its staff yesterday, as it shifts its emphasis from growth to profitability. The restructuring also saw the departure of CEO Herb Scannell, a television industry veteran who once ran Nickelodeon and BBC Worldwide North America, and Mitú president and co-founder, Beatriz Acevedo.
Albert Rodriguez, COO of Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc., (SBS) was appointed to the Board of Directors of the National Association of State Latino Chambers of Commerce (NASLCC). Mr. Rodriguez has over 20 years of financial experience at the executive level in the communications, radio and television operations sectors.
When there’s gold stuck in the hills, you can bet your life there will always be a few rogues attracted to a new area alongside the hardworking prospectors. Influencer marketing is the latest incarnation of a well-trodden path of those who are acting legitimately rubbing shoulders with snake oil salesmen.
Podcasting continues to grow in popularity year after year in the U.S. According to Nielsen’s Fanlinks survey data, the medium saw a significant growth in engagement from 2016 to 2017. In the fall of 2016, 13 million homes identified as “avid fans” of podcasts, while by the fall of 2017, the number of homes that consider themselves “avid fans” soared to 16 million.
The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced the launch of the first Jr. NBA league in Puerto Rico. The Jr. NBA Puerto Rico League will be comprised of 30 teams for boys (ages 14 and under) and will feature a draft event to select teams on July 27.
This is the first release of the table package showing detailed occupation and education for people age 25 and older. The tables were created with statistics from the 2016 American Community Survey.
An overt degree of speculation surrounds the future state of our industry. To me, what’s coming is not such a mystery. The future of marketing and advertising will be increasingly personalized, tech-enabled and data-enhanced. Consumers will continue to choose what they consume and brands will continue to try and influence what consumers choose to consume.
Strategic acquisitions can play a big role in corporate growth strategy. And recently, we’ve seen a number of them in the market research industry, especially in the panel sector. Since GfK Knowledge Network’s acquisition of Garcia Research’s Hispanic panel, Cada Cabeza, in 2010, there have been several large companies acquiring Hispanic panels to bolster their Hispanic sample offerings. Nielsen, Research Now, and most recently, Maru/Blue’s acquisition of the Hispanic panel, Tú Cuentas, just to name a few. By Mario X. Carrasco
Transformation continues at a rapid pace for our industry and clients. One thing that remains constant is our commitment to creativity, big ideas and work that drives impressive results.
























