Category Archives: General

General

A Blacker Choice For Univision

Liz Blacker, a Hispanic marketing and advertising industry veteran who exited as EVP Of Hispanic Strategy And Sales at iHeartMedia in April 2017, has joined Univision Communications as SVP of Branded Content Revenue.

She will be based in New York and report to Lisa Valentino, EVP of Revenue Innovation.

Blacker will be responsible for all aspects of UCI’s Branded Content Revenue and Experiential Studio with a primary focus on driving new and incremental revenue for the company. This also includes oversight of all branded content revenue efforts across the company.

“UCI always seeks out those extraordinary storytellers that help round out diverse portfolio, and as such, I am proud to welcome Liz to our team” said Valentino. “A visionary executive who has a firm grasp on today’s evolving digital industry, we look forward to having her aboard to help drive both new and incremental revenue for UCI.”

Additionally, Blacker will assemble and lead a fully functioning studio team across creative and production services, sales strategy, insights and project management.

“UCI is changing the way brands engage with U.S. Hispanics and I am pleased to join a dynamic team that houses such an extensive portfolio of brands,” said Blacker. “I look forward to helping expand on the Company’s broad client offerings through experiential, creative, and new partnerships that amplify our clients’ experiences and go far beyond traditional advertising.”

At iHeartMedia, Blacker was responsible for building a new division focused on a “Total Market” cross-language, bi-cultural audience while building new products and revenue streams across platforms for national and local sales teams. She also led multicultural trade and industry efforts for iHeartMedia and built an extensive virtual national and local sales team with multicultural market experts across digital, radio, branded content and experiential events.

Blacker joined iHeart in August 2014 after serving as Chief Revenue Officer of Terra USA.

She has also been publisher of Vista magazine under impreMedia ownership, and was an executive director at Yahoo! for the U.S. Hispanic market from 2001-2005.

General

Univision Files Its Long-Expected IPO, Fortifies Ties With Mexico’s Televisa

Updated 16:00 UTC – 2 July 2015

By Adam R Jacobson

MIAMI — The largest media company in the U.S. serving Hispanics has officially notified the Securities and Exchange Commission that it is proposing an initial public offering of the sale of its Class A common stock, a long-expected move that will make Univision a publicly held entity.

The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have not yet been determined. However, MarketWatch reports that Univision plans to offer $100 million in shares.

According to a source close to the matter, the $100 million figure “is a placeholder number that all IPOs use” and that Univision cannot provide guidance on any number at this time, as it is at the start of the public offering process.  The SEC will respond close to August 1 with an initial round of comments, and Univision will then respond to their comments until the government gives the green light for a Univision road show, which would presumably drum up support from potential investors. Following the road show, Univision will ask to go “effective” right before officially pricing its IPO. “If you look at precedent filings the s-1 in July would imply a Q4 offering,” the source tells Adam R Jacobson.

Additionally, MarketWatch notes Univision plans to trade under the “UVN” symbol on either the New York Stock Exchange or on NASDAQ.

Morgan Stanley, Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. are acting as lead book-running managers for the proposed offering.

Univision’s private equity owners include Haim Saban’s Saban Capital Group, TPG Capital, Thomas H. Lee Partners, Providence Equity Partners, and Madison Dearborn Partners.

Mexican media giant Televisa also owns a portion of Univision, and will continue to do so. In a statement released alongside the IPO announcement, Univision said it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Televisa and concurrently amended the company’s all-important Program Licensing Agreement.

The biggest takeaway from this second announcement: Televisa will hold common stock with approximately 22% of the voting rights of Univision’s common stock. Televisa also gains the right to designate a minimum number of directors to Univision’s board of directors.

Imported live and scripted programming from Televisa is highly essential to Univision, and accounts for the majority of the network’s highest-rated programs. Without Televisa, Univision would have significantly less impact in the Hispanic television arena against fierce competitor NBCUniversal, upstart MundoFox and an assortment of cable and broadcast television players including Discovery Networks, Liberman Broadcasting’s Estrella TV, Mexico-based Azteca, and ESPN Deportes.

With today’s PLA amendment, Univision’s exclusive U.S. broadcast and digital rights (with limited exceptions) to Televisa’s programming remains in place for 15 years, up from 10 years–subject, however, to the completion of a minimum amount of net proceeds “and no change of control having occurred,” protecting itself from a hostile takeover.

The revised PLA also slightly adjusts royalty compensation through December 2017, retroactive to January 1, 2015, downward by .07 percent. On January 1, 2018, the royalty rate will increase to 16.13 percent, compared to 16.22 percent under the prior terms. Additionally, Televisa will continue to receive an incremental 2 percent in royalty payments on such media networks’ revenues above an increased revenue base of $1.66 billion, compared to the prior revenue base of $1.65 billion.

The royalty rate will again increase to 16.45 percent starting in June 1, 2018 and for the remainder of the term, compared to the prior rate of 16.54 percent. With this second rate increase, Televisa will receive an incremental 2 percent in royalty payments above a reduced revenue base of $1.63 billion.

Among the deal’s other highlights:

•    Televisa will convert $1.125 billion of Univision debentures into warrants that are exercisable for new classes of Univision’s common stock. As a result of the conversion, Univision’s annual interest payment obligations will decrease by approximately $16.9 million.

•      The conversion of Univision debentures into warrants will have the effect of reducing Univision’s consolidated debt by $1.125 billion. Univision has agreed to pay Televisa on the date of conversion, $135.1 million as consideration for the conversion using a combination of existing liquidity and previously restricted cash, which will become unrestricted as a result of the conversion.

In prepared comments, Univision President/CEO Randy Falco said, “By taking these steps and our pursuit of other related initiatives, Univision is in a stronger competitive position going forward. Televisa is the best Spanish-language content producer in the world, and we are pleased to continue to have its support as we enter the next exciting chapter of Univision’s history.”

Grupo Televisa EVP Alfonso de Angoitia added, “With these transactions we strengthen our relationship further and reiterate our full commitment to Univision and its future.”

ARJ

General, Hispanic Radio

José Valle Bounced From Univision Radio; Takes ‘Political & Advocacy Sales’ Role

By Adam R Jacobson

MIAMI — In a somewhat surprising move, Univision Communications today relieved José Valle–president of Univision Radio–of his duties.

Effective immediately, Valle takes on a new role as president of political and advocacy sales.

Univision Local Media EVP Jaime Jiménez takes on Valle’s former duties, which Valle had held since 2011.

Valle’s specific tasks as president of political and advocacy sales were not disclosed by Univision. However, the move comes just one day after Univision News and The Washington Post announced a partnership for political coverage tied to the 2016 Republican presidential nomination process and next year’s presidential campaign.

Valle will remain based in Los Angeles and retains his seat as a Univision Communications Inc. Officer of the Company.

UCI president of advertising sales and marketing Keith Turner, who Valle will continue to report to, commented, “José brings a fantastic background with diverse experience in sales, general management, local television and radio which make him uniquely qualified to help potential Political and Advocacy clients see all of the opportunities Hispanic constituents and UCI present.”

Valle’s resume includes stints as president and GM of KVEA-Channel 52 in Los Angeles, one of Telemundo’s biggest O&O TV stations. He’s also been VP/GM of KXTX-Channel 39 in Dallas, another Telemundo O&O.

Meanwhile, Jiménez will now oversee all content for 67 AM and FM radio stations serving U.S. Hispanics–including Talk WKAQ-AM and Hispanic Top 40 WKAQ-FM (KQ105) in Puerto Rico. He will also effectively serve as the operations and management leader for Univision Radio’s stations in Los Angeles, Miami and San Antonio.

Jiménez has been SVP/GM for Univision Radio/Los Angeles and previously held LSM duties for Univision’s two broadcast TV stations in Los Angeles: KMEX Univision 34 and KFTR UniMas 46. Prior to that, Jiménez enjoyed a career at Telemundo.

As part of the changes, Univision Radio’s AM stations “will be integrated locally,” effective immediately. What this means was not immediately clear; many recent Univision AMs took on a underperforming nationally distributed Spanish News/Talk format.  However, the company notes the integrated local content approach “will allow for more targeted local content, giving listeners more of the fresh, localized content they want and advertisers the opportunity to reach a hyper engaged, market-specific consumer group.”

In unrelated news, Univision Communications today terminated its business relationship with the Miss Universe Organization, which is part-owned by Donald J. Trump. The decision was based on Trump’s recent remarks about Mexican immigrants.

“At Univision, we see first-hand the work ethic, love for family, strong religious values and the important role Mexican immigrants and Mexican-Americans have had and will continue to have in building the future of our country,” the company said in a statement. “We will not be airing the Miss USA pageant on July 12 or work on any other projects tied to the Trump Organization.”

However, the company did note that Univision News and the local news division will not censor any coverage of all candidates, including that of Donald Trump, thus ensuring its audience continues to have access to all points of view.

ARJ

General

Univision, Washington Post Partner For GOP Presidential Hopefuls’ Forum

By Adam R Jacobson

MIAMI — Univision’s News department has teamed up with The Washington Post for a co-sponsored Republican presidential candidates’ forum set to take place prior to the GOP primaries in March 2016.

The debate that’s not officially a debate is part of a broader collaboration between the Post and Univision that will include polling, joint reporting projects and a focus on the issues that matter most to the Hispanic voter.

The Republican presidential candidates’ forum will take place after the four early states have completed their contests. The March calendar includes primaries in such key Hispanic states as Texas, Florida, and Virginia, home to a large percentage of undocumented Latinos. Even Michigan has emerged as an important state for Hispanics, given the sizable Mexican immigrant population in greater Detroit.

The state of the race will determine the date and location of The Post-Univision Republican presidential candidates’ forum. Invitations to the leading candidates will be extended at that time, Univision announced in a joint statement released June 24.

“Hispanics are the fastest-growing electorate in America today and will be crucial in deciding the next U.S. president,” said Washington Post Managing Editor Kevin Merida. “We are thrilled to partner with Univision. Our goal is to produce together the most authoritative, innovative coverage of Hispanic voters ever seen during a presidential campaign cycle. We will delve into their lives, how they relate to the candidates and how the candidates relate to them.”

Univision News head Issac Lee added, “This important alliance with The Washington Post brings together two media giants with tremendous audience reach,” said Isaac Lee, president of News and Digital, UCI, and CEO of Fusion. “The collaboration will allow us to enhance and expand our coverage of the 2016 presidential elections and provide both our audiences with the most comprehensive and reliable profile of the U.S. Hispanic electorate available to date.”

The Washington Post has added more digital and online readers in the last year than any other U.S.-based news platform, reaching more than 50 million people in April, according to comScore.

Some of The Post’s Spanish-speaking reporters and editors–including political blogger Jose DelReal, campaign reporter Ed O’Keefe, PowerPost editor Rachel Van Dongen–will appear on Univision to discuss the campaign. Univision’s Democratic and Republican analysts will, in return, appear on The Post’s platforms, including video.

ARJ

General

AHAA: Pharmaceutical Companies Lag Behind in Hispanic Targeted Ad Spending

FAIRFAX, Va., June 11, 2015 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — According to a new report from AHAA: the Voice of Hispanic Marketing, pharmaceutical marketers increased their aggregate Hispanic advertising investment by only 4 percent between 2010 and 2014 to $165 million. Among the top 500 U.S. advertisers, the pharmaceutical category allocation to Hispanic dedicated media remained basically unchanged at 2.5 percent, which is significantly less than the national average of 8.5 percent.

Despite overwhelming research supporting the importance of the Hispanic market to corporate bottom lines, the average Hispanic ad spend by pharmaceutical companies actually decreased 9 percent from $6.9 to $6.3 million in 2014. In fact, this category remains at a “laggard” allocation level, defined as companies who assign 1 to 3.5 percent of their marketing budget to Hispanic dedicated efforts. Only two companies allocated more than 6.4 percent to Hispanic dedicated efforts in 2014 from none in 2010. Abbott leads in Hispanic allocation, while Johnson & Johnson-Janssen-Ortho-McNeil lead in Hispanic advertising investment.

Over the past five years, the top 500 advertisers boosted their spending in Hispanic targeted media by 63 percent or $2.7 billion from $4.3 billion in 2010 to $7.1 billion. The top 500 advertisers boosted their average spending from $9 million in Hispanic targeted media in 2010 to $14 million now.

Methodology – Data was collected from Nielsen Monitor Plus which tracked over 340K companies’ advertising expenditures in English and Spanish. This data was analyzed by Santiago Solutions Group for AHAA. SSG divided companies into 5 Tiers according to the percent allocation to Spanish/Bilingual media: Best-in-Class (more than 14.2%), Leaders (6.4%-14.2%), Followers (3.6%-6.3%), Laggards (1.0%-3.5%), and On the Sidelines (Less than 1%).

SSG also segmented the Top 500 Overall Spending (English + Spanish) Companies for years 2010-2014, thus permitting the analysis of trends in the marketplace. Ad Spend Includes spending in Network TV, Spot TV, Cable TV, Radio, Magazines, Newspaper & FSI. It excludes B2B, Display, Outdoor and Cinema.

Featured, General

Hispanic Market Overview 2011, presented by Telemundo: Available Now

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The Adam R Jacobson Editorial Services and Research Consultancy, in association with HispanicAd.com, is proud to announce the release of the 2011 edition of the highly anticipated HISPANIC MARKET OVERVIEW 2011, presented by Telemundo.

Distributed exclusively in the U.S. Hispanic market by HispanicAd.com,  Hispanic Market Overview 2011, presented by Telemundo, offers marketers and advertisers, advertising agency executives and junior multicultural marketing pros a clear, concise snapshot of the state of the U.S. Hispanic market. A review of advertising expenditures and the Spanish-language media those budgets go to is featured throughout the report. Hispanic Market Overview 2011, presented by Telemundo also shines the spotlight on the out-of-home segment, Direct Reponse advertising and the growing call for Spanish-language call centers.

New for 2011 is a breakout section on the rapidly growing Hispanic health and wellness category, which has seen new radio and television programming and the rise of an internet portal devoted specifically to the hot topic.
Also new in Hispanic Market Overview 2011, presented by Telemundo is a streamlined, easy-to-read Hispanic DMA Grid powered by Geoscape.

Hispanic Market Overview 2011, presented by Telemundo is available for download at no charge here.

 

General

The ARJ Hottest 100 – 2014

January 27, 2015

Was 2014 the best single year for music in the last 30 years?

The answer may very well be a resounding yes, as soul, avant-garde and Top 40 converged in ways not seen in quite a while. Influential hipster stations like KCRW in Santa Monica, Calif. introduced the world to Hozier nearly 12 months ago. Today, he’s on Top 40 stations across the U.S. and central Europe.

Meanwhile,Alternative evolved in ways not even KYSR and KROQ could imagine, as Cox MediaGroup’s Florida stations 97X in Tampa and WXXJ 102.9 in Jacksonville paced the entire nation in what “Alternative” means today. At the same time, Toronto’s newest radio station – Indie 88 – may very well be the “Power Pig” of Alternative, as it successfully attacked stalwart 102.1 The Edge at its then-unknowingly most vulnerable point.

Meanwhile, it was the year of Sam Smith, and of Robin Schulz. A wave of German alt-dance paced by Milky Chance flooded the airwaves, mixed in with a pop effort from Taylor Swift that sealed her place as the queen of the airwaves.

Still, there were many under-the-radar songs and acts worthy of greater exposure in 2015, including all of the saints (Saint Motel, St. Vincent, St. Lucia and St. Paul and the Broken Bones), Frank Turner and Tove Lo, perhaps the biggest surprise pop star of the year.

And now, with Australia Day on January 26, we have the Triple J Hottest 100 for 2014. Always a bit avant-garde, this year’s list puts a Chet Faker song at the top with Australian EDM act Peking Duk — an incredible act I’m in love with after not hearing any of their music prior to three hours ago — at No. 2.

It was a great year. So, without further ado, I present THE ARJ HOTTEST 100. These top 100 songs aren’t based on airplay, sales or likes to the act’s Facebook page. It’s a strictly opinionated look at what’s been playing on my iTunes all year, along with my personal preferences. You’ll see some songs released in 2013 that didn’t make it to my corner South Florida until well into 2014.You’ll see some songs released only overseas. You also won’t see Ariana Grande or 1D.  No Maroon 5 or One Republic?Sorry … Just because it’s a hit doesn’t mean I like it.

Don’t know some of these songs? Go to YouTube  or SoundCloud to hear the song in question.

THE ARJ HOTTEST 100 – 2014

1              MAGIC!                               Rude

2              MILKY CHANCE             Stolen Dance

3             SAM SMITH                      Stay With Me

4             TOVE LO                             Habits(Stay High)

5             HOZIER                               Take Me To Church

6             BIG DATA f/JOYWAVE                Dangerous

7             LILLYWOOD & THE PRICK f/ROBIN SCHULZ Prayer In C

8             SPOON                               Do You

9             MR. PROBZ f/ROBIN SCHULZ                Waves

10           CLEAN BANDIT f/JESS GLYNNE            Rather Be

11            ST. LUCIA                          Elevate

12            NICO & VINZ                    Am I Wrong?

13           TAYLOR SWIFT              Shake It Off

14           GEORGE EZRA                Budapest

15           SIA                                         Chandelier

16           SAM SMITH                      I’m Not The Only One

17           FOSTER THE PEOPLE  Best Friend

18           NEW PORNOGRAPHERS          Brill Bruisers

19           PHANTOGRAM              Fall In Love

20           ED SHEERAN                   Don’t

21            COMMON LINNETS    Calm After The Storm

22           ALT-J                                    Left Hand Free

23           SOMEKINDAWONDERFUL     Reverse

24           ST. VINCENT                    Digital Witness

25           BANKS                                                Beggin’ For Thread

26           ST. PAUL& THE BROKEN BONES        Call Me

27           VANCE JOY                      Riptide

28           ARCTIC MONKEYS       Do I Wanna Know?

29           BLEACHERS                     I Wanna Get Better

30          BLACK KEYS                     Fever

31           JUNGLE                              Busy Earnin’

32           MARLON ROUDETTE When The Beat Drops Out

33           SAINT MOTEL                 My Type

34          TENNIS                               I’m Callin’

35           ENO + HYDE                     Daddy’s Car

36          BASTILLE                           Bad Blood

37           MR. LITTLE JEANS       Good Mistake

38          INTERPOL                         All The Rage (Back Home)

39          LANA DEL REY               West Coast

40          JACK WHITE                     Alone In My Home

41           CAPITAL CITIES              One Minute More

42           LADY ANTEBELLUM   Bartender

43          TAYLOR SWIFT              Blank Space

44          GEORGE EZRA                Blame It On Me

45          ANNIE LENNOX             I Put A Spell On You

46          ALLE FARBEN f/GRAHAM CANDY      She Moves (Far Away)

47          DISCLOSURE f/SAM SMITH     Latch

48          MEGHAN TRAINOR     All About That Bass

49          ZHU                                      Faded

50          AMERICAN AUTHORS               Best Day of My Life

51           BASTILLE                           Pompeii

52           ELLA HENDERSON       Ghost

53           SHEPPARD                       Geronimo

54          ECHOSMITH                     Cool Kids

55           ARCTIC MONKEYS       Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High

56          SIGMA                                 Nobody To Love

57           KASABIAN                        Eez-eh

58          KONGOS                            Come With Me Now

59          JOHN LEGEND                All Of Me

60          NAUGHTYBOY f/SAM SMITH La La La

61           DJ SNAKE AND LIL JON            Turn Down For What

62           JACK WHITE                     Lazaretto

63          BASTILLE                           Flaws

64          ASEGIR                               King And Cross

65          IGGY AZALEA  f/CHARLI XCX                  Fancy

66          “WEIRD AL”YANKOVIC           Word Crimes

67          JAMES BAY                      Let It Go

68          CHARLI XCX                     Boom Clap

69          RAY LAMONTAGNE    Supernova

70          RIXTON                              Me And My Broken Heart

71           ED SHEERAN                   Sing

72           KLINGANDE                     Jubel

73           LP          Night Like This

74          MIKKY ECHO                   Smile

75           TV ON THE RADIO        Happy Idiot
76          THE WAR ON DRUGS     Red Eyes

77           KNOX HAMILTON        Work It Out

78          COLDPLAY                       A Sky Full Of Stars

79          FAUL & WAD AD & PNAU        Changes

80          BIRDY                                  Wings

81           ENRIQUE IGLESIAS f/SEAN PAUL        Bailando

82           LONDON GRAMMAR                Hey Now

83          KIESZA                                Hideaway

84          sElf                                        Runaway

85          TODD TERJE f/BRYAN FERRY Johnny and Mary

86          CHROMEO                        Jealous (I Ain’t With It)

87         BEA MILLER                     Young Blood

88          GRISWOLDS                    Beware The Dog

89          WATERMǺT                     Bullit

90         BLEACHERS                     Rollercoaster

91          TIZIANO FERRO             Senza Scappare Mai Più

92          NICK MULVEY                                Cucurucu

93          THE AVENER                    Fade Out Lines

94          ARCADE FIRE                  Afterlife

95          PARRA FOR CUVA f/ANNA NAKLAB Wicked Games

96          PHARRELL WILLIAMS               Happy

97          AVICII                                   Hey Brother

98          SAM SMITH                      Money On My Mind

99          ED SHEERAN                   Thinking Out Loud

100        THE MAGICIAN f/YEARS & YEARS       Sunlight

 

Originally posted to followers on Facebook in late November 2015.

POST-SCRIPT: The choice of “Rude” by Magic! as the No. 1 song of 2014 was based on early exposure to the track on San Diego radio stations, which gave the song massive airplay and helped spread the story well before mainstream radio in South Florida began to play the record. Hence, iTunes spins of the song outnumbered all other songs for 2014. Additionally, “Fancy” by Iggy Azalea f/Charli XCX was debated for its inclusion but appears as it was a “night out” track. Absent is Future Islands’ “Seasons (Waiting On You),” which has built in airplay thanks to a remix featured on KCRW in January 2015 and is a potential low entry into the 2015 list.

 

General

Understanding The ‘Bi-llenial’: Spanglish Spots Not The Solution

Creative that speaks to the bilingual, bicultural Latino in both Spanish and English may not be the best use of a brand’s time and money.

 

That’s a key conclusion presented in a July 31 webinar, “The Bilingual Brain,” as part of Univision’s Hispanic 411 series.

 

“You don’t gain a lot with ‘Spanglish’ with the bilingual Hispanic,” concludes Manuel Garcia-Garcia, neuroscience director at Nielsen, one of three participants in the webinar. Garcia adds that language switching within the same :30 “limits memory”—a detriment to the marketer.

 

“Language consistency is better for advertising,” he says. “Whenever you switch, you’re losing something—and every second costs money.”

 

Garcia says he wasn’t surprised by the study’s findings, and cautions brands that engage in Spanglish creative by saying, “Use it—don’t abuse it.”

 

Among the other key findings from the Bilingual Brain study, conducted by Nielsen:

 

  • In no case did English-language ads perform better than Spanish-language ads with respect to emotional response and memory among the study participants
  • Scenes that feature human interaction provide an emotional boost for respondents when viewing the Spanish-language version of Heineken’s “Tiger” commercial, compared to when viewing the English-language version of the spot
  • Elevated memory activation was seen among Hispanics when viewing the Spanish-language Heineken commercial, compared to those when watching the English-language version

 

“It’s what is going on with people that activates emotion,” notes Esther Franklin, EVP of Starcom MediaVest Group Americas Experience Strategy.

 

Garcia adds that set-up scenes are more effective in Spanish than in English among the bilingual study respondents, leading to increased engagement.

 

Participants in the study were examined through neuroscience, which took into account one’s emotional resonance and how marketers can use the findings to optimize their advertising. Specifically, participants were connected to an EEG apparatus with 32 sensors that collect data 500 times per second. Concurrently, participants’ eye tracking was examined to pinpoint visual hot zones. “We know what your brain is responding to,” says Roberto Ruiz, SVP of strategy and insights at Univision.

 

Along with the Heinken spots, respondents viewed advertisements by brands in the QSR, tech, and CPG categories; the spots, shown three times each, appeared in Spanish, English and “Spanglish.”

 

Respondents for the study were recruited in San Francisco and Atlanta, respectively. Ruiz notes that Hispanics from these markets that participated in the study represent a diverse group of first-generation and U.S.-born Hispanics, with English-preferred and Spanish-preferred respondents.

 

Hispanic millennials account for 20% of all millennials in the U.S.; 65% of Hispanic millennials are U.S. born. The population segment accounts for $1.5 trillion in buying power as of 2015.

 

–Adam R Jacobson