Media

Despite a US economy that shows signs of softening in key areas, growth is predicted in direct marketing (DM) expenditures, sales, return on investment (ROI), and employment through
2008, as reported in The Power of Direct Marketing, the Direct Marketing Association’s (DMA) annual forecast of direct marketing’s economic impact on the US economy, including advertising expenditures and sales.

It is a truly sad day for millions of Spanish-speaking baseball fans. Billy Berroa has passed away. Billy was diagnosed with Colon Cancer in late 2005 and he passed quietly among family and friends in his native Dominican Republic.

As the 2007 Major League Baseball season comes to an end, ESPN Deportes will present the most extensive coverage of winter baseball from the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Venezuela. ESPN Deportes will televise more than 60 winter league baseball games, including each league’s championship series.

DESAPARECIDOS, a new pioneering docudrama featuring real life cases of missing Hispanics in the U.S., premieres Tuesday, October 23, on LAT-TV’s 22 market network. The program informs audiences about facts and circumstances surrounding unsolved missing person cases, (primarily children) providing viewer education and safety tips. The show aims to alert the community and hopefully prevent such crimes from occurring in the future.

Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. (SBS) announced that it entered into a new agreement with the leading satellite television provider in the United States, DirecTV. Under the agreement, SBS’ MEGA TV (Channel 22 in Miami) will be distributed nationwide starting October 17th on DirecTV MAS, Channel 405. The agreement is a landmark deal for SBS as it secures national distribution for its programming only a year and a half after inaugurating operations in Miami.

Many hope that mobile brand advertising is finally on the move.

The world’s wireless infrastructure is moving in the right direction, and the inventory required to attract brand advertisers is gradually becoming available.

According to Broadcasting & Cable magazine, Telemundo cable and digital-media chief Antoinette Zel is out at the company after three years. According to sources familiar with the matter, Telemundo president Don Browne decided not to renew her contract as senior executive vice president, network strategy. A network spokesperson confirmed that she will be leaving to “pursue other options in the industry” and said the decision was mutual.

Steve Mandala, Senior Vice President of Sales for Telemundo, has been promoted to the newly created position of Executive Vice President, Cable Ad Sales for NBC Universal, effective immediately. The announcement was made today by Mike Pilot, President, NBC Universal Sales and Marketing, to whom Mandala will report.

As EVP of Cable Ad Sales, Mandala is responsible for overseeing the sales and marketing efforts for the company’s cable entertainment networks, USA, Sci-Fi, BRAVO, Chiller, Sleuth and Uni HD. He will also help with the transition at Telemundo, continuing to oversee sales until a replacement is named.