Designed for the Hispanic-speaking market, the new platform will launch on March 31 with an AVOD option, ViX, and an SVOD option, ViX+, offering over 50,000 hours of content.
TelevisaUnivision, the Spanish-language media and content company, today unveiled ViX, the first global large-scale streaming service created specifically for the Spanish-speaking world.
ViX will offer more than 50,000 hours of Spanish-language content across genres, including original series and movies, live sports, live news and current Televisa and Univision hits as well as access to an extensive library of top franchise content and formats from Televisa’s vault.
The two-tier service will include a free AVOD product, ViX, launching on March 31, with 100 EPG channels and vast-content VOD experience, and an SVOD option, ViX+, with premium content, including “ViX+ Originals” and exclusive soccer, set to launch in the second half of 2022.
A Beta version of the streaming app is available beginning today for select users in the U.S. and Mexico.
“With the content and capabilities of the combined TelevisaUnivision, we are uniquely capable of delivering a groundbreaking streaming service to the nearly 600 million Spanish speakers around the world. For the first time ever, our global audience will have a high-quality streaming experience that provides a huge variety of world class entertainment, sports and news produced in Spanish for Spanish speakers,” said TelevisaUnivision Chief Executive Officer Wade Davis.
“Beyond our audience, ViX will be a platform that expands our solutions to both our advertising and distribution partners, creating new and powerful ways for them to reach our audience and grow our businesses together. There is nothing like this in the marketplace, and only the combined power of TelevisaUnivision can deliver ViX and ViX+.”
The new service will launch in the U.S., Mexico and most of Latin America, and will be available across all major platforms and via web at vix.com. The company’s existing streaming options, PrendeTV, Blim TV and the legacy VIX AVOD service acquired in 2021, will be incorporated seamlessly into the new ViX platform in the coming months, ensuring an uninterrupted viewing experience for users.
“We are uniquely prepared to launch a global Spanish-language streaming service of this scale. With the merger of Televisa and Univision, our combined history gives us an incredible experience in reaching Spanish speaking audiences, and we will use these learnings to deliver a top-quality streaming service to hundreds of millions of Spanish-speakers around the world who want to see their diverse culture, language, interests and experiences represented and reflected onscreen authentically,” says Pierluigi Gazzolo, President and Chief Transformation Officer of TelevisaUnivision.
“Importantly, we have access to the largest portfolio of Spanish-language hits, through Televisa’s deep library with 300,000 hours of content, prolific production engine and an extensive portfolio of intellectual property, and will make significant incremental investments in content beyond our networks. This will result in the broadest, largest entertainment, news and sports streaming offering ever amassed in Spanish. Combined with the massive reach we have with our audience, this content will fuel our streaming service like no other in Spanish language.”
ViX, the AVOD tier
With ViX, the service’s AVOD tier, users will be able to stream a vast array of long form entertainment plus live sports and news free of charge, in the first broadcast-quality ad-supported offering for the Spanish-speaking world, enabling audiences to engage with content that reflects their culture and language. ViX will curate a massive 40,000 hours of content, with more than 100 curated channels of broadcast-quality content and live programming, allowing consumers to easily discover and rediscover their favorites within the familiar interface of an electronic programming guide (EPG).
ViX brings classic novelas and mega-hits from Televisa, partnerships with some of the world’s best producers from Colombia to Turkey and scripted and unscripted series, Hollywood blockbusters, indie movies and Latin American films, all in Spanish and with a lower ad load than traditional TV. ViX will also have an unmatched news offering from multiple worldwide sources, with top international channels on an exclusive basis for the Americas, including Noticias Univision 24/7 and a new streaming channel from Noticieros Televisa. Finally, ViX will also deliver a broad soccer offering, featuring some of the top leagues and tournaments in the world and more matches for Spanish-language audiences than any other streaming destination in front of the pay wall, as well as Zona TUDN, a new 24/7 sports news channel featuring talk-shows, analysis, commentary and exclusive interviews.
ViX+, the SVOD tier
With the service’s SVOD tier, ViX+, consumers will have access to the most premium Spanish-language content ever offered on an SVOD service, with 10,000 hours of programming to enjoy. In the first year alone, the service will premiere more than 50 ViX+ Original series and movies representing, on average, at least one new original per week.
ViX+ will feature works developed exclusively by some of the master Spanish-language creators and storytellers. Today, TelevisaUnivision announced a new partnership with Salma Hayek Pinault’s Ventanarosa Productions for a 2-year first-look deal to produce exclusive Spanish-language feature films. The company had previously announced exclusive first-look deals with Eugenio Derbez and Ben Odell’s 3Pas Studios and Maria Dueñas, as well as an original docu-series produced by Selena Gomez, and deals with Mario Vargas Llosa, Santiago Limón and Propagate’s Ben Silverman.
Created in partnership with leading international production companies, original content representing Mexico, the U.S, Colombia and Spain will include a reboot from horror series “La Hora Marcada,” co-productions with Dynamo and Mediacrest, and a multi-title deal with The Mediapro Studio. In addition, ViX+ will feature a comprehensive pipeline of productions from the company’s own studios including new bio-series on the lives of Mexican idols and new productions from Latino audiences’ favorite genre, the novela, with exciting new titles produced in a contemporary style and designed for today’s streaming audiences.
Mexico’s movie powerhouse Videocine will premiere many original productions exclusively on ViX+ in Mexico in the first year of the service. Some titles will also be available in the U.S. Other great titles from movie partners will be available on demand to subscribers. Finally, ViX+ will be the world’s preeminent home of soccer in Spanish, with more than 3,000 live games a year – equating to more than 6,000 hours of live soccer in the U.S. and Mexico combined – super-serving fans with the best competitions and leagues from around the globe. This creates an unmatched sports offering with more in-language soccer matches in one place than any other streaming destination.
Together, ViX and ViX+ will deliver the most comprehensive World Cup coverage in Mexico, giving users access to 40 live games, including 10 exclusively on ViX+, and extended coverage of the tournament from Mexico and Qatar through the new Zona TUDN 24/7 Sports channel.
From original premium series to exclusive movie debuts, from sports to news and beyond, ViX and ViX+ will set a new standard for AVOD and SVOD streaming in the Spanish-speaking world.
“We will make it our mission to deliver more native Spanish-language content than any other streaming service,” completes Gazzolo. “There is no question to me that ViX will become the essential streaming service for Spanish-speaking viewers and the brands that want to reach them.”
Throughout the last year, TelevisaUnivision incorporated seasoned streaming executives from established global services to work on the development and launch of ViX, including Rafael Urbina, Executive Vice President and General Manager AVOD, ViX; Rodrigo Mazon, Executive Vice President and General Manager of ViX+; Michael Cerdá, Executive Vice President of Product & Engineering; Cameron Carr, Executive Vice President of Data & Insights; Adam Waltuch, Senior Vice President of Streaming Partnerships; and Roger Solé, Chief Marketing Officer of ViX.
“Let’s be clear: Our new service is not a reskinning of a TV offering,” says Davis. “What we are building is incremental to our TV business. Hundreds of originals, thousands of hours of exclusive live, premium soccer, live original news and much more in an innovative product and at an unbeatable price point.”
ViX programming includes:
Novelas: From classics like Marimar and Rebelde to mega-hits such as Teresa and Amores Verdaderos, as well as superstars including Thalia, Angelique Boyer, Sebastián Rulli, Gabriel Soto and more.
Movies: Top-performing movies and series from leading studios, such as Lionsgate, MGM and Disney, among others, all available in Spanish.
Channels: Broadcast-quality streaming channels such as the curated Derbez Channel, with authentic, family-friendly content, the beIN Sports Xtra en Español channel and a collection of children’s channels, including Moonbug Kids featuring megahits Cocomelon and Blippi.
Live Sports: The new Zona TUDN a 24/7 sports news channel, which will become the super fanáticos´ destination of all sports, featuring extended coverage, talk shows, analysis, commentary and exclusive interviews. Live and exclusive soccer offering including the Game of The Week, which features some of the top leagues and tournaments in the world.
Live News: An unmatched news offering from multiple worldwide sources, including the Noticias Univision 24/7 news channel and featuring live simulcasts with up-to-the-minute coverage of breaking news and events relevant to audiences. Also, new original content, including Algo Personal con Jorge Ramos (Something Personal with Jorge Ramos). Available at launch, the new show, hosted by the ten-time Emmy Award-winning journalist and best-selling author, will feature intimate conversations with renowned personalities. Additionally, ViX will feature a new streaming channel from one of the most trusted and viewed brands in Latin America: Noticieros Televisa.
ViX+ programming that will premiere in the first year includes:
ViX+ Original Series:
Mi Vecino El Cartel (The Cartel Among Us): From executive producer Selena Gomez, this true-crime documentary series tells the complex and intriguing story of a murder that rocked a quiet suburban town in Texas and launched a multi-year international investigation. (Production: July Moon Productions and Blackfin).
Nautilus: Based on a true story, written by Clayton Trussell (Narcos) and directed by Ariel Vromen (The Iceman), this Colombian-Spanish production tells the story of a policewoman in the almost impossible mission to investigate a group of criminals on a four-week journey aboard a submarine across the Atlantic. (Production: Dynamo and Mediacrest).
La Hora Marcada (Time’s up): From Televisa’s IP vault, this anthology series is a reboot of the ’80s horror series La Hora Marcada, which launched the careers of some of Mexico’s most acclaimed filmmakers including Alfonso Cuarón, Guillermo del Toro, and Emmanuel Lubezki. This franchise will – once again – be a showcase for a new wave of Latin American writers and directors of the genre as they lead this fresh take on a cult classic. (Production: W Studios).
Las Pelotaris (The Pelotaris) [Working Title]: As part of a multi-title deal with top Spanish production company The Mediapro Studio, Las Pelotaris is a drama created by Marc Cistaré (Vis a Vis, El Barco, La Víctima Número 8) set in 1930s Spain and Mexico, in which three female racket players navigate a male-dominated world of rivalry and corruption.
Marea Alta (High Seas): Filming in Tijuana and Ensenada later this year and written by Antón Goenechea (Perdida) and directed by Roger Gual (Las Chicas del Cable), this thriller is a whodunnit series targeting a young adult audience. (Production: El Estudio).
Los Artistas (The Artists) [Working Title]: As part of a first-look deal with bestselling author Maria Dueñas, her first direct-to-series project is a high-stakes heist story of deceit, forgery and suspense, set in the rarified world of multi-million-dollar art. (Production: Pow Wow and Islas Audiovisual).
Travesuras de la Niña Mala (Bad Girl): Adapted from the novel written by Nobel Laureate Mario Vargas Llosa, this epic love story starts in the 1960s and plays across Lima, Paris, Madrid, Tokyo, London and other incredible destinations. (Production: W Studios).
Pinches Momias: From talented writer-director Santiago Limón and the Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning executive producer Ben Silverman (The Office, Jane the Virgin, Ugly Betty), this young-adult series blends action, horror and comedy. (Production: Propagate and Perro Azul).
Pedro Infante and Maria Felix Bio Series: Two original series depicting the lives of two acclaimed Mexican icons, Pedro Infante and Maria Felix, “La Doña.” (Production: Televisa Studios).
ViX+ Novelas:
Senda Prohibida (Forbidden Path): Written by Giselle González (“Cuna de Lobos,” “Caer en Tentación,” “Imperio de Mentiras”), this modern reimagining of Televisa’s very first novela, focuses on Nora, who destroys a happy family to achieve the life of style and luxury she’s always dreamed of. (Production: Televisa Studios).
La Mujer del Diablo (The Devil’s Woman): Starring Carolina Miranda and José Ron and written by Leonardo Padrón (Si Nos Dejan, Rubí, Amar a Muerte), this drama tells an unconventional love story of obsession and revenge. (Production: W Studios).
Más Allá de Ti (Beyond You): From top producer Rosy Ocampo (Vencer el pasado, Vencer el desamor, Vencer el miedo, La Doble Vida de Estela Carrillo, La Fuerza del Destino), this supernatural tale features a woman who discovers she can communicate with the dead, which will result in unknown consequences for the living. (Production: Televisa Studios).
ViX+ Original Movies:
Quiero Tu Vida (I Want Your Life): As part of a first-look deal with Salma Hayek Pinault’s Ventanarosa Productions, this romantic fantasy set in the soccer world tells a wonderful story about a superfan who wakes up one morning in the body of a famous soccer player superstar and learns that his favorite sport is not all fun and games. (Production: Ventanarosa Productions).
Jenni: Brought to ViX+ by Mucho Mas Media, the movie is based on the life of the late Mexican American idol Jenni Rivera; this biopic is produced by Hollywood creators Javier Chapa and Donald De Line.
Among the original Videocine movies coming to ViX+ are:
Presencias (Presences): Starring Academy Award nominee Yalitza Aparicio and Alberto Ammann, this suspense and horror story features strange events after a man decides to mourn his wife’s death in the woods. A Dream Assignment production directed and produced by Luis Mandoki (Message in a Bottle, When a Man Loves a Woman, Innocent Voices).
Enfermo Amor (Lovesick): Starring Camila Sodi, Eréndira Ibarra and Juan Pablo Medina, among many renown talent, this unlove story will touch millions of hearts with one of the greatest Mexican ensemble casts of all times.
Las Leyendas, El Origen (Legends, The Origin): This animated film is the sixth installment of one of the most important and relevant animation franchises in the Spanish-speaking world, a big hit through the years.
Mirreyes contra Godínez 2, El Retiro (Mirreyes vs. Godinez 2, The Retreat): This hilarious film is the sequel to Mirreyes contra Godínez (2019), a successful film that deeply resonates and connects with Hispanic audiences. Produced by Draco Films.
ViX+ Sports Docuseries:
La Sangre y la Gloria (Blood and Glory) [Working Title]: Produced by The Mediapro Studio, this docuseries features true crime sports cases.
Brasil 2002, La Verdadera Historia (Brazil 2002, The Real Story): Directed by Luis Ara, this docuseries celebrates the 20th anniversary of Brazil’s World Cup victory with exclusive footage from Juliano Belletti, and interviews with Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos. Produced by Collective Media and Entourage Sports and Entertainment, in association with Trailer Films.
Al Grito de Guerra: A look at the Mexican National Team and their infamous ‘curse of the fifth game’, produced by El Estudio.
LIVE Unprecedented Soccer Offering:
In the U.S., ViX+ will deliver the most impressive soccer offering to fans with four Liga MX teams and a variety of leagues and tournaments from Central and South America, while also serving as the exclusive Spanish-language home of all the UEFA Champions League matches.
In Mexico, ViX+ will be the home of Mexican soccer, providing audiences with access to more Liga MX matches than they can see anywhere else, as well as all Mexican National Team games and the largest sporting events featuring Mexican athletes.
In Mexico, both ViX and ViX+ will deliver the most comprehensive 2022 World Cup coverage, with 40 live games, 30 on ViX and 10 matches that can only be watched exclusively on ViX+, with game around the game content and extended coverage of the tournament from Mexico and Qatar through the Zona TUDN Sports channel.
