Media and Broadcasting

iHeartMedia and NRJ Group Partner to Develop, Translate, Distribute and Monetize Podcasts Hits for New French Audiences

iHeartMedia, the No. 1 audio company in America and the No. 1 podcast publisher globally as per podtrac, and the French multimedia group NRJ announced today a strategic partnership to develop, translate, distribute and monetize a specially curated slate of iHeartRadio Original podcasts for French listeners. The first translated podcasts will be available on the iHeartRadio app, in France on NRJ Group’s platforms and everywhere podcasts are heard from the last quarter of 2021, with regular new additions thereafter.

Podcasts to be translated include the iconic “Stuff You Should Know,” the first-ever podcast to surpass one billion downloads. Launched in April 2008, the podcast has continuously educated listeners on a variety of topics in science, history, pop culture, urban legends, conspiracy theories and more. With thousands of episodes, a number of sold-out live events, a television season and a book deal, the show and its riveting hosts have garnered a loyal following across the globe.

Additional shows in the curated slate are set to include other popular curiosity podcasts including “Stuff You Missed in History Class,” “BrainStuff,” “Unobscured with Aaron Mahnke” and “Cabinet of Curiosities,” music podcast “Rivals” as well as some of the most riveting true-crime podcasts like “Piketon Massacre,” “Missing in Alaska,” “Murder in Oregon,” and “Paper Ghosts” with more to come.

“NRJ Group is proud to work with the world’s leading podcast publisher, sharing the same mission: making high-quality entertainment podcasts available to the widest audience. This deal enables us to significantly enrich our offer to French listeners while clearly positioning NRJ Global as the top reference in France for the monetization of podcasts,” said Cécile Chambaudrie, NRJ Global President & CEO of NRJ Group digital activities.

In addition, the partnership will also include a slate of new co-produced podcasts featuring top French talent with more details to be announced in the future.

As part of the deal, NRJ Group will distribute select iHeartRadio Original English-language podcasts across their apps and websites; and will lead the monetization efforts in France with exclusive monetization rights for the French translation versions. and the co-produced slate of new podcasts from existing and emerging French talent. And to drive revenue faster, NRJ Global will leverage Triton Digital’s (recently acquired by iHeartMedia) industry-leading supply side platform Yield-Op and its programmatic audio marketplace.

“As podcast audiences continue to explode in the United States, the medium is also going global, beginning to grow meaningful fanbases around the world,” said Conal Byrne, CEO of iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group. “iHeartMedia is in a unique position to partner with the best audio companies from each territory - like NRJ in France - offering them deep archives of existing hits for translation, co-production of new shows to better support the French podcast creator community, and ad technology from Triton to build sustainable podcast revenue fast as part of the premiere worldwide audio marketplace.”

About NRJ Group
NRJ Group is among the main media groups in France, producing, publishing, distributing and monetizing a wide variety of content, with a leading position in privately-owned radios thanks to its 4 brands (NRJ, Chérie FM, Nostalgie and Rire & Chansons), a significant role in TV both free (NRJ12 and Chérie 25) and pay (NRJ Hits), and a major actor of broadcasting through its subsidiary TowerCast. NRJ brands also live online with websites, mobile and voice-operated apps and over 240 digital radios, making NRJ the 1st privately-owned digital radios’ publisher in France. NRJ Group operates in 17 other countries.

About iHeartMedia, Inc.
iHeartMedia, Inc. is the leading audio media company in America, reaching over 250 million people each month. It is number one in both broadcast and digital streaming radio as well as podcasting and audio ad tech and includes three business segments: The iHeartMedia Multiplatform Group; the iHeartMedia Digital Audio Group; and the Audio and Media Services Group.

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TelevisaUnivision and Charter Communications Announce Strategic Renewal, Expanding Distribution of Linear Networks

Charter Communications | January 25, 2024

TelevisaUnivision and Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR) today announced a multi-year agreement to extend and expand their partnership. This agreement provides Spectrum customers with continued access to the most-watched Spanish-language news, sports and entertainment programming in the country. The modern deal framework is designed to enhance Spectrum's ability to serve the massive U.S. Hispanic audience with expanded access to an unprecedented amount of Spanish-language content. As part of the arrangement, TelevisaUnivision will create a new ad-supported premium subscription version of ViX, set to launch later this year. It will be available at no additional cost to Spectrum customers who receive TelevisaUnivision channels as part of their Spectrum TV Select or Mi Plan Latino packages. ViX's "Premium with Ads" offering will give viewers access to the entire ViX Premium content offering, including exclusive original series, novelas, comedies, movies, thousands of live exclusive soccer matches and tens of thousands of hours of library content with a moderate advertising load. The combination of ViX's premium streaming programming with TelevisaUnivision's market leading linear channels will create an unmatched Spanish-language content offering available to Spectrum customers at no incremental cost. In addition to giving Spectrum customers access to the forthcoming ad-supported premium version of ViX, the agreement enhances Charter's flexibility to offer its video customers high-value linear and over-the-top TV packages. TelevisaUnivision's U.S. channels will be included as an integral launch partner in a new, innovative, low-cost Spanish-language internet-delivered video package that Spectrum will launch in the coming months. "We're pleased to enter into an innovative deal with Charter that underscores a shared commitment to the growing Hispanic market and prioritizes their needs and interests, ensuring TelevisaUnivision's leading content remains available to viewers for years to come," said Mike Angus, Executive Vice President, Global Distribution and Streaming Partnerships at TelevisaUnivision. "This deal demonstrates the value we can deliver to our partners and consumers by continuing to invest in both the linear and streaming platforms to create a complementary Spanish-language content ecosystem." "We appreciate TelevisaUnivision's willingness to fully support our new distribution framework, which is good for customers and a significant step forward for the video ecosystem," said Tom Montemagno, Executive Vice President, Programming Acquisition for Charter. "With this agreement, our customers will continue to enjoy access to TelevisaUnivision's extensive Spanish-language programming, including entertainment and live sports, across multiple platforms. This furthers our goal of providing value to customers by including streaming apps with Spectrum services." Spectrum provides customers with access to TelevisaUnivision's networks, including Univision, UniMás, Galavisión, TL Novelas, TUDN, FOROtv, Bandamax, De Película, De Película Clasico, Telehit and Telehit Música. About TelevisaUnivision TelevisaUnivision is the world's leading Spanish-language media company. Powered by the largest library of owned Spanish-language content and a prolific production capability, TelevisaUnivision is the top producer of original content in Spanish across news, sports and entertainment verticals. This original content powers all of TelevisaUnivision's platforms, which include market-leading broadcast networks Univision, Las Estrellas, Canal 5 and UniMás, and a portfolio of 38 cable networks, which include TUDN, Galavisión, Distrito Comedia and TL Novelas. The company also operates the leading Mexican movie studio, Videocine, and owns and operates the largest Spanish-language audio platform in the U.S. across 35 terrestrial stations and the Uforia digital platform. TelevisaUnivision is also the owner of ViX, the largest Spanish-language streaming platform in the world. For more information, please visit televisaunivision.com. About Charter Communications Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR) is a leading broadband connectivity company and cable operator serving more than 32 million customers in 41 states through its Spectrum brand. Over an advanced communications network, the Company offers a full range of state-of-the-art residential and business services including Spectrum Internet®, TV, Mobile and Voice. For small and medium-sized companies, Spectrum Business® delivers the same suite of broadband products and services coupled with special features and applications to enhance productivity, while for larger businesses and government entities, Spectrum Enterprise provides highly customized, fiber-based solutions. Spectrum Reach® delivers tailored advertising and production for the modern media landscape. The Company also distributes award-winning news coverage and sports programming to its customers through Spectrum Networks.

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