Globalization with Latin flavor

Abstract

Latin America has produced and distributed audiovisual contents that are as popular as those produced in the United States, this is what we call, globalization with a Latin flavor. This phenomenon has developed thanks to two elements: the production of telenovelas and their distribution to the Hispanic market in the United States and the rest of the world and the international expansion of some of the Hispanic companies. In this context, some media groups have been key players. In concrete, in this paper, we will study the case of Televisa, the largest producer and exporter of telenovelas. A monopoly for over twenty years, Televisa held a privileged position that allowed it to develop competitive advantages on both the domestic and the international markets. Its expansionist strategies toward the United States and Spain opened up new markets that favored expansion by other American groups, as well as by Spanish groups towards America. A study of this market will allow us to confirm the hypothesis that Latin globalization is culturally different than the Anglo-Saxon version, and to understand its specific dimensions and features.