 | |
| Disney Hispanic America | |
| Formerly | Disney & ESPN Media Networks Latin America (2005–2019) Fox Networks Group Latin America (2004–2019) |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | Television |
| Founded | November 1, 2005; 20 years ago (2005-11-01) |
| Headquarters | Buenos Aires, Argentina Bogotá, Colombia Mexico City, Mexico Miami, United States |
Area served | Latin America Caribbean |
| Products | Television channels |
| Owner | The Walt Disney Company Latin America |
| Parent | Disney Entertainment |
| Website | https://prensa.disneylatino.com/canales-tv |
| Footnotes / references [1][2][3][4] | |
Disney Media Networks Latin America (formerlyFox Networks GroupLatin America) was created in 2005 with headquarters located inBuenos Aires, Argentina, and is the owner of manyLatin American versions of Disney channels.[5]
It is a division ofThe Walt Disney Company Latin America, which in turn is one of the international divisions ofThe Walt Disney Company brand. All of the company's channels are broadcast fromBuenos Aires, Argentina.[6]
It is definitiveThe Walt Disney Company's version forHispanic America and the Spanish-speaking world in theUnited States.
On November 1, 2005, the subsidiaries ESPN Media Networks Latin America andWalt Disney Television International Latin America merged into a new joint sales organization for their television channels. The new entity, called Disney & ESPN Media Networks Latin America, would become responsible for the sales of its television channelsESPN,ESPN 2,ESPN+,Disney Channel and Jetix (Disney XD as of July 3, 2009). Until that time, affiliate sales forDisney Channel and Jetix were handled by HBO Latin America Group.[7] From its launch until 2007, Jetix's operations in Latin America were managed separately in the region by the Jetix Latin America division (formerly Fox Kids Latin America LLC). In that year, it merged with Disney Media Networks.
TheDisney Channel,Disney Jr.,Star Channel,FX,Cinecanal andNational Geographic channels are managed from headquarters in Buenos Aires,Bogotá,Miami andMexico City.[8][9][10][11] For its part,ESPN has its own studios in a modern production complex called ESPN MediaCenter, located inSan Isidro, in the northern part of the Province of Buenos Aires.[12]
In August 2009, Fox International Channels Latin America signed a strategic and distribution alliance with the premium channel networkLAPTV. This allowed for FOX affiliate sales teams throughout the region to providecable,satellite,MMDS and IPTV systems with an integrated service. This service had as its objective increase penetration and value perception of pay TV, both premium and basic, as well as continue efforts to reduce piracy.[13]
The agreement gaveLAPTV a local presence inChile andCentral America and expanded its range of commercial opportunities. It was anticipated, for example, that the premium channel group led by Movie City would have a greater promotional presence on Fox's basic channels.[14]
The first major success was the series Kdabra, co-produced by Fox Telecolombia andLAPTV. This series is the first 100% Spanish-language series to combine elements of the real world and the supernatural. Over time, more original productions were developed in other locations in Latin America.[15]
In 2013,LAPTV merged with Fox International Channels Latin America and ceased to exist as such.[16]
On March 19, 2019, following the acquisition of 21st Century Fox,Fox Networks Group and Disney & ESPN Media Networks Latin America merged to create Disney Media Networks Latin America.[17][18]
On November 26, 2020, Disney announced that Fox Channel would rebrand toStar Channel on February 22, 2021 and launched new graphics for the channel.[19][20][21][22] For its part, Fox Life changed its name toStar Life and Fox Premium changed its name toStar Premium respectively. However, theStar Premium channels closed a year later, on February 1, 2022.[23]
On January 10, 2022, Disney announced that five channels would close:Disney XD,Nat Geo Kids,National Geographic Wild,Star Life and FXM on March 31 of the same year, due to the company's restructuring policy, with the objective of move its contents toDisney Channel,Disney Jr.,National Geographic,Star Channel,FX andCinecanal respectively.[24]
On November 10, 2023, it was officially reported that Fox Sports 2 and Fox Sports 3 channels would be rebranded to ESPN 7 and ESPN 6 respectively on February 15, 2024. The same happened with ESPN Extra which was renamed to ESPN 4, while ESPN 4 was renamed to ESPN 5 for the same day.[25]
Current
Former
