Comcast has reached a long-term agreement with Univision to carry its 24-hour cable-TV sports network.
Under the terms of the deal, Comcast, which owns competitor Telemundo, will distribute Univision Deportes Network (UDN) to XFINITY TV customers who subscribe to its Digital Preferred or XFINITY Latino levels of service.
The deal comes after more than a year of negotiations and criticism from Univision’s CEO Randy Falco that Comcast’s $45 billion bid for Time Warner Cable (TWC) would stifle competition.
Other companies, including DISH and Netflix, have expressed concern about Comcast’s growing power. If Comcast’s takeover of TWC is approved by the FCC, it would become the dominant cable provider in the country’s biggest markets.
UDN is expected to be available in standard definition to Xfinity customers in October – estimated to be about 12 million Comcast TV homes. Comcast’s largest Hispanic markets, which include New York, Miami, Houston, Chicago, San Francisco, Sacramento, Albuquerque, Fresno, Denver and El Paso, will begin receiving the channel in HD by the end of the year.
Launched in April 2012, the all-sports network airs top sporting events, including Liga MX soccer matches, U.S. and Mexican national soccer team matches, Major League Soccer, boxing, NFL, NBA, MLB, and other sports leagues. Comcast’s Hispanic distribution platform currently delivers more than 60 Latino networks in both Spanish and English to XFINITY TV customers.
