One of the country’s most well-known Spanish media companies has new owners.
Searchlight Capital Partners and ForgeLight LLC recently announced its acquisition of a 64% majority ownership interest in Univision Holdings, based in Miami. Media company Grupo Televisa will continue to maintain a 36% ownership interest and will maintain its program license agreement.
With the acquisition complete, ForgeLight founder Wade Davis becomes Univision’s CEO. Davis and his team plan to use Univision to deepen its relationship with the Hispanic community, according to a release. For its part, Univision will create new content for a new generation of Hispanic viewers by expanding its advertising products and enhancing its digital presence.
“I am honored to be partnering with Searchlight and Televisa to begin this exciting new era for Univision,” said Davis said in the release. “Televisa’s strategic insight and global content leadership, coupled with Searchlight’s tremendous experience as a long-term media investor, will help us fully realize Univision’s potential as the leading Hispanic content company in the United States. Univision’s recognized and trusted brand, its consistent performance, and its leadership serving an important and growing consumer audience give us an unmatched opportunity to achieve even greater success.”
Wade added that this is a “pivotal moment” for Univision, which he says “plays an increasingly important role in educating audiences about key issues relevant to the Hispanic community and encouraging and elevating the dialogue on social justice and equality, while also continuing to provide entertainment when viewers need it most.”
Wade now wields the numbers that Univision is well-known for. As the owner or operator of 61 stations in the country, Univision was ranked as the number one primetime television network, regardless of language, amongst adults aged 18-34 from May 25, 2020, to Sept. 6, 2020. Its second network UniMás was the fastest-growing broadcast network in all of television during the third quarter. Not to be forgotten is Univision’s radio reach: its Uforia arm covers 58 owned or operated radio stations, plus 89 affiliates, a live event series. Univision also has a streaming service Univision Now.
