Upfronts: TelevisaUnivision touts linear audience gains, new streaming ads

During TelevisaUnivision Inc.'s first upfront since the merger, the combined entity emphasized its ad-supported streaming service and championed the performance of its linear networks and a new data set to drive advertisers' business results.

Donna Speciale, president of U.S. advertising sales and marketing at TelevisaUnivision, told media buyers at the May 17 event that the company's linear networks are bucking the industry's downward trend, registering a 7% gain across the board in prime time, with flagship Univision ahead 18% season to date.

"Where are all those linear impressions going? They're coming to TelevisaUnivision," Speciale said.

With Hispanic people representing 20% of the U.S. population and an average of 14 years younger than the nation at large, the group is attractive to advertisers as they are purchasing homes and cars and forming buying habits.

Speciale said 200 new advertisers have been added to the TelevisaUnivision roster over the past year as marketers look to reach the group beyond general-market campaigns. Ad buyers who want to reach viewers in Spanish are finding their ads to be more effective across different metrics, she said.

Additionally, new advanced ad formats — including pause, takeover and shoppable ads — are being added to the company's free ad-supported streaming service, ViX. The service bowed on March 31 with 100 channels and 40,000 hours of on-demand fare. A subscription premium product, ViX+, is slated to bow later this year,

Speciale said most datasets are leaving out four in 10 U.S. Hispanics. By comparison, the company has been working on the industry's first data graph to provide a much more accurate picture of this audience, covering 85% of U.S Hispanic households and growing. By working against this info, marketers can create custom audience segments targetable across all company platforms and optimized for the most important business outcomes.

On the programming front, the company highlighted a new late-night show, "De Noche Pero Sin Sueño" ("Sleepless at Night"), hosted by Adrian Uribe; a two-hour special about the late Latina recording artist Selena Quintanilla; and "Siéntese Quien Pueda," a new live entertainment show on UniMas melding celebrity news, and opinions and debate from journalists, celebrities and social media experts.

The company also netted a multiyear renewal with CONCACAF for exclusive Spanish-language rights in the U.S. to the Gold Cup, the top national team competition in North America.