The recently appointed VPE and Regional Leader of Paramount Latin America spoke with ttvnews at Content Americas about the group’s present and its initiatives for 2023.
At the end of 2022, Paramount announced the appointment of Eduardo Lebrija as executive VP and Regional Leader of Paramount Latin America.
And now, the executive arrived with his new role at Content Americas to take stock of what the group’s transformation was, and present some of his projects and initiatives in the region.
“We are going through an interesting transformation that was necessary,” the executive began by explaining to ttvnews. “We have a very robust international content portfolio, where we have free and paid streaming platforms, open and pay TV, and we do many events around it.”
Referring to his new role, he added: “So I think it was a way for us to adjust, taking this leadership and this commercial lead part, to be able to monetize all the platforms and really use the portfolio together to get more benefit out of it. It’s what they have commissioned me to do. To continue to work very hard on new projects throughout the region, growing and adding from Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile… everywhere in the region.”
The change also comes at a key moment for the industry, which continues to evolve in terms of platforms and players. “It’s an interesting moment,” Lebrija said. “It has advanced very quickly since streaming began very strongly, in all traditional media companies like ours today, they have been revolutionized. The adaptation time must be faster and faster and that is an important part of what I am trying to do with all the teams”.
Thus, today, the group is divided into three large verticals that cover film, TV and streaming. “Those are the three different large verticals that we have. And each one is divided, it depends on each region. In the case of Latin America, which is where I work, we have everything launched and everything advancing, and in progress”.
“It’s a market where the future is going to dictate a lot for other markets. We really have everything going. We launched first of all in the rest of the world, after the US, Paramount+.”
And to continue growing in the region, the executive explained that they will continue to bet heavily on original content, which he considers “key” when it comes to competing.
“We have the idea of betting on original production strongly. Dario Turovelsky is in charge of the VIS studios, in addition to Chilevision and Telefe. Original content continues to set the tone, without a doubt there are many plans and we will continue to grow because clearly the original content is today what really makes the difference and is key. There are many plans to continue producing a lot,” he explained.
“Also betting on sports,” he added. “We ventured into a great soccer league, the Premier League for Mexico and Central America, followed by the Libertadores, we are about to launch it on Paramount+ and Pluto TV. The results that the Premier League has given us are extraordinary. I think the ecosystem is complemented by sports. Entertainment plus sports we believe is the formula”, he concluded.
