Mediapro closes the purchase of Fox Sports channels in Argentina

After its approval by the National Commission for the Defense of Competition (CNDC) of the Argentine government, Mediapro will control the Fox Sports pay television channels after the purchase for approximately 28.5 million euros of these assets from the Walt Disney company as part of the divestment required after its merger with 21st Century Fox.

The channels operate under the names Fox Sports, Fox Sports 2 and Fox Sports 3 with more than 8 million subscribers and more than 4,000 hours of original content per year. The channels annually broadcast more than 2,000 sports competitions and more than 2,000 hours of live sports programs. The channels have current contracts for the broadcast of live competitions such as the Copa Conmebol Libertadores, the UEFA-Champions League, Formula 1, ATP, Liga ACB (Spanish Basketball League), MLB (baseball), NFL (American football), World Series Seven (rugby) and PBC (International boxing), WWE (wrestling) and UFC.

The CNDC stated in a statement that "the deconcentration seeks to avoid the formation of a dominant position in the market for basic sports signals" by committing to carry out "monitoring compliance with the behavioral commitments established on Disney in the commercialization of signals in Argentina."

“These commitments establish requirements on the marketing and bundling conditions that minimize the portfolio effects that the operation could generate even after the divestment has been completed, and for a period of five years,” the statement adds.

24 years in Argentina

Mediapro has been present in Argentina for more than 24 years with business units dedicated to the provision of audiovisual services and innovation, development of new digital formats and content production (The Mediapro Studio and Oficina Burman).

It has a team made up of more than 620 professionals, which provide their services in events of international relevance such as the Pan American and Parapan American Games and competitions of Conmebol, CONCACAF, Copa América and FIFA World Cup.

The audiovisual group has been producing and organizing, for 5 years, also the Professional Video Game League (LVP), the main e-Sports competition in Latin America and in which teams such as River Plate or Boca Juniors compete.

Regarding content production, The Mediapro Studio It has an important infrastructure in Argentina. Among the latest projects carried out, the series “Iosi, the repentant spy” stands out, a production by Oficina Burman (The Mediapro Studio), created by Daniel Burman for Prime Video, released simultaneously in 240 countries and/or territories.

The Mediapro Studio is the producer of the latest film by Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat, Official Competition, presented at the Venice International Film Festival and coming to the United States at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film stars Penelope Cruz, Antonio Banderas and Oscar Martinez.

Tacho Benedict, founding partner of the Mediapro group, recognizes that "with the acquisition of the Fox Sports channels, one of the leading sports channels in Argentina, Mediapro consolidates its position in the country and throughout South America. We are convinced that Fox Sports clients will appreciate the new sports content project that Mediapro is going to launch with the ambition of becoming a benchmark in the country. We are going to fight for leadership, as we have always done around the world in our more than 25 years of history."