Evan Redwood, Business Development Manager of Media and Entertainment at Google; Luis Torres-Bohl, founder and president of Castalia Communications; Alejandro Rojas, VP of Applied Analytics at Parrot Analytics; Doris Vogelmann, VP of Programming and Operations at Vme Media Inc.; and Jennifer McBride-Castro of Marketing and US Affiliate Distribution at Condista. Thomas Umstead, Senior Content Producer Programming at Multichannel News, moderated the panel
During the panel Reflecting on changes in distribution dealmaking at this year’s Hispanic Television Summit, Alejandro Rojas, VP of Applied Analytics at Parrot Analytics, announced that they’re developing a system to quantify the revenue generated by Hispanic content on streaming platforms.
“In essence, the analysis examines monthly subscriptions and determines the revenue portion attributable to Spanish-language content based on its demand. We’ve discovered that this figure has tripled since 2018. Furthermore, we noticed that growth in 2022 and 2023 has leveled off or remained steady,” Rojas explained to PRODU.
Joining Rojas on the panel were Evan Redwood, Business Development Manager of Media and Entertainment at Google; Luis Torres-Bohl, Founder and President of Castalia Communications; Doris Vogelmann, VP of Programming and Operations at Vme Media Inc.; and Jennifer McBride-Castro of Marketing and US Affiliate Distribution at Condista. Thomas Umstead, Senior Content Producer Programming at Multichannel News, moderated the panel.
Vogelmann of Vme highlighted the significance of monetizing acquired content. “You must not only draw in viewers but also be able to monetize the content,” he stated.
McBride, for his part, noted that Condista has implemented a strategy of showcasing data that highlights Hispanics as the key segment to target.
Rojas observed a deceleration in the streaming industry, which is not expanding at the same pace as before. He also highlighted that while Spanish content continues to grow, it faces heightened competition from other languages, such as Korean and Japanese, which are experiencing more rapid growth. “There was a substantial increase from 2018 to 2021, driven by the surge of Spanish content on global platforms, exemplified by hits like ‘La casa de papel,’” he said.
Rojas noted that drama content is the most profitable, while comedy is gaining momentum. “Spanish content needs to continue to be relevant. Competition has increased. Korean producers, Filipino producers, and even Turkish producers are producing interesting content. From a practical perspective, you’re in a market that, despite growth, has empowered many other players who have benefited from the overall streaming boom,” he emphasized.
Rojas added that Spanish content has a significant advantage: its vast user base of approximately 500-600 million worldwide. “Even if you exclude streaming subscriptions, likely 20-30% of the population speaks Spanish, making it a substantial market,” he pointed out.
He advised producers of Hispanic streaming content to strive for a deeper understanding of their audiences and the function of each content type. “In this industry, audiences are no longer passive, but you must actively engage them. Unlike traditional TV, where you have captive audiences, you now need to attract and retain viewers. The initial challenge is to make people aware of your existence and gain traction among the vast array of content available. This is a universal challenge,” he said.
