Media

Consumers are dancing to the beat of Pandora. In an RBC Capital Markets study conducted in November 2014, 51% of US internet users reported listening to music via Pandora—nearly double those who did so in December 2013. This put the music streaming platform in the top spot as it surpassed more traditional FM/AM radio as well as CDs.

If social media is the new water cooler, U.S. viewers certainly had their share of “let’s discuss” moments in 2014. From someone kind of getting devoured by an anaconda to the U.S. Men’s World Cup soccer squad trying to make a go of it to, well, zombies, there’s no shortage of Twitter activity during programs—and even in the days after.

Gabriel Coronel, Kimberly Dos Ramos, Sissi Fleitas, Judith Grace, Fabián Ríos, Don Pedro Rivera, Maripily Rivera, Henry Santos, Fernando Vargas and Gabriela Vergara are ready to kick-off the new season of the culinary competition, “Top Chef Estrellas,” this Sunday, January 11th at 9pm/8c on Telemundo.

Adding to ESPN Deportes’ 11th anniversary celebration today, the network announces the addition of Hugo Sanchez to its lineup of distinguished on-air talent. Sánchez joins ESPN Deportes to serve as an analyst for Futbol Picante and other platforms, starting January 15.

In today’s world, social media usage appears to run rampant at times. Aside from just keeping in touch with friends and family, social media has a plethora of other uses; but while more Americans are seeing benefits from their social media usage, they are also encountering some negative experiences.

Leading into its exclusive Spanish-language telecast of Super Bowl XLIX when it rebrands to become NBC UNIVERSO on Feb. 1, NBCUniversal’s Hispanic cable network mun2 will air in Spanish this Saturday’s Divisional Playoff matchup between AFC powerhouses the Baltimore Ravens and the New England Patriots.

Young adult (YA) fiction adaptations—movies based on young adult fiction titles—are a growing slice of the box office pie, increasing 6% between 2013 and 2014. One might assume that teens are driving this trend, considering that the characters in these books are around their age. But in reality, young adults are heading to theaters less frequently than they were five years ago, and fans of the YA movie genre span many age groups.

Nearly nine in 10 US companies with at least 100 employees will use social media for marketing purposes this year, eMarketer estimates, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. December 2014 polling by Ascend2 found that marketing professionals worldwide still faced many obstacles to achieving social media marketing success.

Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. (SBS) announced the inauguration of its new “Vacilon de la Mañana” morning show format called “El Show de El Chikilin” on KLAX (97.9 FM), La Raza along with the on-air arrival of popular radio personality Beto Diaz “El Chikilin”. The show, serving the Los Angeles, CA market, will air from Monday through Friday 6am-10am and features Beto Diaz “El Chikilin”, Raul Bernal, Dr. Cesar Lozano and Maria Chaires.
 

DIRECTV introducedYaveo, a Spanish-language streaming entertainment service available with an Internet connection (first on PCs, MACs and Android devices, closely followed by iPhone, iPad, Xbox 360, and other devices).

NBCUniversal’s Hispanic Enterprises and Content announced the appointment of Jeff Mayzurk to Senior Vice President, Operations and Technology.  He will be based in Miami and will be responsible for developing and executing technology strategy across all business units, including Telemundo Network and Studios, Telemundo International and mun2. He will oversee all operations, technology and facilities teams and be tasked with evolving network architecture, including supporting systems and technologies.

ESPN Deportes will provide exclusive Spanish-language coverage of the first-ever Football Playoff. The new post-season format will feature four teams in the semifinals followed by a championship game between the winning programs – ESPN Deportes will provide complete coverage of the highly anticipated doubleheader semifinal Rose Bowl and Allstate Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.

The terms of citizenship and social life are rapidly changing in the digital age. No issue highlights this any better than privacy, always a fluid and context-situated concept and more so now as the boundary between being private and being public is shifting.

Toyota has teamed up with actor William Levy to create the first-of-its-kind, choose-your-own adventure video on Instagram with the bold new 2015 Toyota Camry.

Local television broadcasting companies FOX, Tribune Media, and Univision have joined forces with Timeline Labs to announce NewCoin LLC., a new data venture aimed at addressing deficiencies in local market television audience measurement.  The mission of NewCoin is to harness the data gathering power of currently available and emerging technologies, in order to create a broader based measurement tool that will accurately measure audiences across the entire spectrum of linear and digital platforms.

NBCUniversal rolled out Telemundo Now on Xbox One®from Microsoft, joining USA Now and Syfy Now.

Telemundo 40 in McAllen, TX announced that Miguelángel López has been promoted to News Director. In this role, he will be responsible for the overall performance of the news department and all other local productions across multiple media platforms.

AP&P Solutions announced the appointment of Mike Cano as President.

NBCUniversal announced the promotion of Meara Abramson Valenzuela to Senior Vice President, Planning and Strategy, Hispanic Enterprises and Content. She is based in New York and will report to Marlene Sanchez Dooner, Executive Vice President, Hispanic Enterprises and Content.

Super fans are the individuals that make their passion for a brand a central part of their lives and identity. Characterized by their intensity of emotion and “loyalty beyond reason,” brands are looking to harness this super fan culture in new ways through the use of technology.  Courtesy of UCI Trend Lab