ViX surpassed 50 million subscribers on its free tier

TelevisaUnivision has announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2024. The company reported a total revenue increase of 3%, reaching $1.3 billion compared to the same quarter last year. In the U.S., revenue grew by 1% to $799 million, while Mexico saw a more substantial growth of 8%, reaching $458 million. Advertising revenue showed a strong performance, growing by 6% to $785 million. In the U.S., advertising revenue increased by 2% to $462 million, and in Mexico, it experienced a robust 13% increase, reaching $323 million.

A major highlight for the company was the 2024 Copa America, which drove record-setting viewership across networks and ViX, TelevisaUnivision’s streaming service, in both the U.S. and Mexico, surpassing the viewership of the 2022 World Cup. This success underscores the company’s ability to leverage its linear and streaming platforms effectively. ViX saw substantial audience growth and engagement, surpassing 50 million global monthly active users on its free tier. The platform continues to outperform expectations across key performance indicators (KPIs).

Subscription and licensing revenue, however, declined by 2% to $445 million. In the U.S., it decreased by 1% to $321 million, and in Mexico, it saw a 3% decline to $124 million. Total operating expenses rose by 6% to $896 million, driven by investments in ViX, third-party advertising sales expansion in Mexico, and higher sports-related costs. Adjusted OIBDA (Operating Income Before Depreciation and Amortization) declined by 3% to $362 million, showing an improvement over the prior quarter.

Cash provided by operating activities was $88 million, up from $74 million in the previous year. The company completed a significant debt refinancing, addressing over half of its 2026 maturities by issuing $500 million of new 2031 Senior Secured Notes and $500 million of new 2029 Term Loans. TelevisaUnivision ended the quarter with $240 million in cash, an increase of $15 million from the previous quarter.

Global ad sales momentum accelerated, particularly in Mexico, which saw success in attracting new advertisers. The company anticipates continued benefits from its Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) business turning to profitability and the U.S. presidential election cycle.

Wade Davis, CEO of TelevisaUnivision, expressed: “Q2 was an exciting quarter for us in which we saw building momentum in most areas of our business and delivered some historic milestones. We leveraged the combined power of our linear and streaming platforms to deliver the most watched Spanish language soccer tournament in the U.S. in many years, outperforming the 2022 World Cup. Our DTC business continues to pace ahead of plan and is over-delivering across all of its major KPIs. Global ad sales momentum accelerated, driven by a strong marketplace in Mexico and success in the U.S. in attracting new advertisers to our platform. We are looking forward to the second half of the year where the benefits from DTC’s turn to profitability, the U.S. presidential election cycle, and execution across the rest of our business, should yield a great next couple of quarters.”

TelevisaUnivision plans to continue capitalizing on its strong market position and operational efficiencies. The company aims to maintain its growth trajectory by focusing on strategic investments in content, technology, and expanding its advertiser base.