Media

Major League Soccer announced on Wednesday that former LA Galaxy midfielder and world soccer superstar David Beckham has exercised his option to purchase an MLS expansion team, and that he’ll be setting up shop in Miami.

CNN en Espanol will shut down its US Hispanic programming platform CNN Latino after close to one-year in operation.

Univision Communications, Inc and Variety Media LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Media Corporation announced a new partnership to launch an entertainment news brand, “Variety Latino–Powered by Univision,” aimed at providing Spanish speakers across the U.S. with coverage of all aspects of the global entertainment industry.

The Telemundo Station Group named Cristina Schwarz as President and General Manager of Telemundo 47 / WNJU, the NBCUniversal-owned television station serving the Hispanic community in the New York Tri-State area. Additionally, Liliana Aristizabal was promoted to Vice President of Sales for the station.

Entravision Communications Corporation announced that the company has appointed Luisa Collins to Vice President of News, Social Affairs and Wellness, effective February 10th.  She will be based in Los Angeles, California.    In her new position, Collins will oversee news content and be responsible for quality control across Entravision’s 25 television stations that currently air local news coverage.  She will also be responsible for expanding the Entravision brand by developing increased content for the news websites.

Telemundo Media has announced the appointment of A. Victoria Rivas-Vázquez as Noticias Telemundo Bureau Chief in Washington D.C.  In her new role, Rivas-Vázquez reports to Noticias Telemundo Senior Vice President, Sylvia Rosabal. 

Telemundo Media has been nominated for seven GLAAD Media Awards in the Outstanding Spanish-Language Daytime Talk Show Episode, Outstanding Spanish-Language TV Journalism and Outstanding Spanish-Language Local TV Journalism categories.

Twentieth Century Fox announced that the studio will release the upcoming feature film SON OF GOD in a limited number of US theaters in Spanish language day and date with the nationwide theatrical release on February 28, 2014.

mun2 will premiere its first MMA (mixed martial arts) competition reality series “Combate Americas” on Sunday, February 23rd at 10:00p.m. EST/ 9:00p.m. CST. The series produced by BMP Latin ( a division of Emmy award winning Bunim/Murray Productions) and created by Co-founder of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Campbell McLaren, follows the lives of ten Hispanic MMA fighters as they compete, coexist and face the daily challenges set before them to win an exclusive contract with the new Combate Americas franchise. The series will be hosted by award-winning Latin music duo Chino & Nacho and MMA host/journalist Andrea Calle. Urban music superstar Daddy Yankee will serve as Combate Americas’ first commissioner and Piolin, SiriusXM host of Piolin Radio channel 147, appears as the color commentator.

Social media has become a critical channel for brands looking to connect with consumers, but it looks like many followers aren’t getting the attention they expect, according to data released in December 2013 by Sprout Social.

Sure, dogs have been well-established as man’s best friend for some time now, but according to the January 2014 Local Watch Report, Americans have a blossoming love affair with another trusty sidekick—the mobile device.

ESPN Deportes will offer exclusive coverage of the Caribbean World Series 2014 LIVE from Margarita Island, Venezuela. Coverage kicks off with a double-header on February 1, with Puerto Rico vs. Dominican Republic and Mexico vs. Cuba. After 53 years, Cuba – represented by Villa Clara, champion of Cuba’s National Series -returns to the Series and joins “La Fiesta del Caribe.”

WAPA Television has signed an agreement with Miguel Cotto Promotions to present “Boxeo Boricua” (Puerto Rican Boxing) exclusively in the U.S. on WAPA America.

The television industry has witnessed a shakeup in recent years with TV viewers’ quick adoption of new viewing platforms and the gradually declining levels of cable and satellite subscription services. Some have expressed concerns about how TV service subscription rates are changing and whether this will affect the current business model. However, a recent TV Dailies poll conducted by Ipsos MediaCT surveying prime-time viewers’ subscription service behavior suggests the industry should not be worrying just yet.

Telemundo Studios announced the kick-off of its new original production “Reina de Corazones,” starring Paola Núñez, Eugenio Siller, Juan Soler and Catherine Siachoque. Set in Sin City – Las Vegas – “Reina de Corazones” is a story of a love that must overcome the barrier of memory, where the glamorous nightlife and casinos play a prominent role in a plot characterized by mysterious twists and turns, espionage, conspiracy, intrigue, crime and romance.

Olympusat, Inc. has recently signed with BuenaVision to exclusively distribute its high-quality entertainment-based programming, from the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean, to the United States.

Univision Communications Inc. has announced a licensing agreement with Telelatino Network, a holding of Corus Entertainment, to rebrand Telelatino’s TLN en Español (TLNE) as Univision Canada.

ESPN Deportes announced that they will be conducting their 2014 Upfront activities on May 14 at 9:00 a.m. at the Hearst Tower in New York City.

Telemundo Media and Spain’s Reset TV announced plans to jointly own, develop, produce and distribute “El Artista” (Working Title), a new musical competition format and weekend primetime series, set to premiere in the 2014-15 season.

UniMás, a Univision network, announced the acquisition of the exclusive rights for the dramatic series “El Varón de la Droga” (The Drug Baron) at NATPE.