http://adage.com/hispanic/article?article_id=140562
YouTube Gets Univision, but Not Telenovelas
Dispute With Televisa Hampers Spanish-Language Network\'s Online Efforts
ByMichael Learmonth
Published:November 16, 2009
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Once, Univision was the most pirated network on
YouTube. Now, the leading U.S. Spanish-language broadcaster is going
into business with YouTube, but that\'s where things get complicated.
Univision announced
a dealwith YouTube today that will put shows produced by the network on
Google\'s behemoth video site. The deal includes programs such as the
talk show \"Cristina,\" Univision\'s Latin Music Awards and the prime-time
reality show \"Nuestra Belleza Latina.\"
But the deal does not include Univision\'s most popular telenovelas,
the steamy serial soap operas produced by Grupo Televisa in Mexico that
include \"Cuidado Con el Angel,\" which aired earlier this year, and \"Un
Gancho al Corazon,\" which are the main audience-drivers to the network.
That\'s because Univision is locked in a legal dispute with Televisa,
its main programming supplier, which provides about 40% of its
programming. One part of that dispute was settled in January, but the
issue of who has the right to distribute Televisa programming in the
U.S. is still up in the air, hampering Univision in its bid to build
its online presence and stopping Televisa from expanding its Mexican
media empire in the U.S.
Some background: In 1992, Univision signed a 25-year exclusive U.S.
TV rights deal with Televisa, but naturally that deal did not address
whether Univision\'s distribution rights included anything resembling
the internet. Business went sour between the two, and Televisa ended up
suing Univision for violating the terms of the original deal by
underpaying royalties.
Unsettled issues
While that
suit was settledearlier this year, the issue of who has the right to distribute shows
on the web in the U.S. wasn\'t. A U.S. judge ruled in July that Televisa
doesn\'t hold the rights but stopped short of granting them to
Univision, though Univision has said it
hopes to gain those rights soon.
In the meantime, perhaps because of the animus involved, Televisa
simply ignored the fact that fans were uploading its telenovelas to
YouTube, where they were accumulating hundreds of millions of views.
Cumulatively, Univision clips had
far more viewsthan Fox, ABC, NBC or CBS on YouTube, according to web analytics firm
TubeMogul. A new telenovela, \"Sortilegio,\" which premiered Oct. 6, has
already garnered nearly 70 million views on YouTube.
Because it has no control over whether Televisa policed YouTube for
pirated copies, Univision has little control over which Televisa shows
end up there. Ironically, that has given Univision a sense of whether
their presence online hurts ratings: not much. Univision is one of few
broadcast networks increasing its audience year-over-year, whether its
shows are on YouTube or not.
Unlike some of its network brethren, Univision is putting up full episodes of the shows it has the right to do so on YouTube.
In a conference call, Kevin Conroy, president of Univision
Interactive Media, didn\'t address whether Univision would put Televisa
shows on YouTube even if it could. \"We\'d very much like to be able to
offer Televisa\'s content as video,\" Mr. Conroy told Ad Age in
September. \"We\'re not in a position to do it quite yet.\"
Televisa has become more aggressive about policing YouTube over the
past year, and now it distributes its shows on its own site, Esmas.com,
which is blocked for U.S. viewers. The number of pirated clips of
Televisa-produced Univision shows are down 53% since February,
according to TubeMogul.
Publicado por Fuego
Publicado el 17/11/2009 10:52 - Total Temas: 52 - Total Mensajes: 1996
