Univision, Televisa Disagree on Internet Rights

UNIVISION, TELEVISA DISAGREE ON INTERNET RIGHTS
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Michele Gershberg]
Univision Communications Inc. and its Mexican programming partner Televisa, already embroiled in a legal dispute over television royalties, also disagree on the rights to air shows on the Internet in the United States, a Univision executive said on Wednesday. "There's a difference of opinion as to those rights," Univision President Ray Rodriguez told reporters after the top U.S. Spanish-language broadcaster unveiled its 2006-2007 broadcast lineup to advertisers. "We are going to work with Televisa to figure out how to make it work," he said. "It's not a front burner issue." Televisa is Univision's primary supplier of programming with a U.S. broadcast deal through 2017. The two companies appear to differ on whether the original agreement for television broadcasting applies to other media delivery outlets, but it was not immediately clear whether the dispute applies to venues beyond the Internet. Televisa, which also owns nearly 11.4 percent of Univision, said last week it joined private equity firms Bain Capital, Blackstone Group, Carlyle Group, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Microsoft founder Bill Gates' Cascade Investment for a potential bid to buy Univision outright.
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