Unitel Bolivia
UNITEL (UNIVERSAL DE TELEVISIÓN) is a Bolivian commercial television network headquartered in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. It was founded in 1987 in Santa Cruz de la Sierra. It is owned by businessman Osvaldo Monasterio Nieme.[1] The company broadcasts sports, entertainment, political programs, and daily news programs nationwide in the South American country.[2]
Country | Bolivia |
---|---|
Broadcast area | Bolivia |
Headquarters | Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia |
Programming | |
Language(s) | Spanish |
Picture format | 1080i HDTV (downscaled to 480i for the SD feed) |
Ownership | |
Owner | Empresa de Comunicaciones del Oriente Ltda. |
Sister channels | Canal Rural Bolivia |
History | |
Launched | 1985 (La Paz) 1987 (Santa Cruz de la Sierra) 1989 (Oruro) |
Replaced | Telesistema Boliviano (La Paz) Teleoriente (Santa Cruz de la Sierra) |
Former names | Telesistema Boliviano (La Paz, 1985–1997) |
Links | |
Website | www |
Availability | |
Terrestrial | |
Digital VHF | Channel 2.1 (La Paz) |
Analog VHF/UHF | See the section below |
The channel has broadcasting rights for sporting events such as the Bolivian Professional Football League and the World Cup since 2002. However, no league matches are broadcast live, but sold through streaming rights in Bolivia.
It broadcast several beauty projects, such as Miss Santa Cruz, Miss Bolivia, Reina Hispanoamericana, Miss Universe and Miss World from 2001 to 2017.
Since 2006, Unitel began broadcasting 24 hours of daily programming.
In mid-2013 it became the first Bolivian television station to broadcast, with its own production, an international format of the production company Endemol, Yo Me Llamo Bolivia.
Since August 2014, the channel broadcasts the youth program specialized in TVN Chile license games, called Calle7 Bolivia.
In 2018, the channel acquired the transmission licenses for Bolivia for the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches.
From 2 April 2018, the channel launched its own high-definition signal within the digital terrestrial television system under test, until 15 April, when it began broadcasting with the name of Unitel HD.
History edit
Telesistema Boliviano (TSB) was founded on November 22, 1983 as the first commercial television company in Bolivia.[3] At the time of founding, TSB achieved the license to broadcast in La Paz on channel 2. The channel was the opposite of ATB (channel 9) in some way, as the channel provided "quality programming" over political preferences.[4]
Experimental broadcasts started on February 12, 1985 before becoming regular on April 14, 1985, being owned by Antonio Maldonado. On weekdays the channel broadcast for seventeen hours on average (7am to 12am) and twelve on weekends (11am to 11pm).[5]
TSB's main accolades were becoming the first television channel in Bolivia to broadcast 18 hours a day and the first to produce three news editions (morning, midday, evening) in contrast to Televisión Boliviana and ATB, which only started in the afternoon and produced only one news bulletin, which gave the station some success. It was also the first channel to produce news bulletins in the Aymara language, broadcast at 6am, presented by Donato Ayma and with a smaller recap in the same language late at night.[6] TSB set up an affiliate in Oruro in 1989, TVO, which also broadcast on channel 2.[7]
In Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the station was Teleoriente, which started broadcasting on channel 9 in February 1987.[8][9] The station had small facilities, but had the ambitions to overcome limitations in the human resources and broadcasting sectors.[9]
The station in Santa Cruz consolidated its position as a local television station when, in 1991, it affiliated with Red ATB, enabling its programs to be seen in seven of the nine departments of Bolivia. In 1993, the station introduced a new building, which as of 2008 was still in use.[9]
The channel originates from the purchase of ABC (Asociación Boliviana de Canales) by "Illimani de Comunicaciones" (Red ATB) and its subsequent sale to Tito Asbún, owner of Taquiña. In Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Red ATB terminated the contract with the Monasterio family, beginning to operate through Channel 5. After several negotiations, the Monasterio group kept the shares of Telesistema Boliviano in La Paz and Oruro.
In April 1996, Unitel began broadcasting the CONMEBOL France 98 Qualifiers where it broadcast the away matches of the Bolivian Soccer Team against the teams of Venezuela, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Argentina live for all of Bolivia, as well as the Monasterio family channel broadcast the three games of those South American qualifiers for France '98 also live for all of Bolivia.
In September 1997, the channel was officially launched via satellite and shortly thereafter it obtained national coverage. In the early-mid 2000s, the Monasterio family bought a station in Cochabamba.[8] Today, it is considered one of the largest privately owned television networks in Bolivia.
In 2001, Unitel achieved the exclusive rights to air the 2002 and 2006 editions of the FIFA World Cup.[9]
By 2007, Unitel had become one of Bolivia's three leading television networks, the other two being ATB and Red Uno. At the time, it had an exclusivity contract with TV Globo to air telenovelas from its catalog. From 2003 to 2007, the network had broadcast eleven titles: Esperança, O Dono do Mundo, O Rei do Gado, Mulheres Apaixonadas, O Clone, Celebridade, Senhora do Destino, Presença de Anita, América, Belíssima and Cobras e Lagartos. The contract lied mainly in the quality of its telenovelas, in contrast to those produced by Televisa, which were preferred by the lower class. In July 2007, the network was airing Belíssima at 9pm, after the evening edition of Telepaís.[8]
According to a research held in the same year, Unitel had 51.7% of the market share, against 35.1% of Red Uno and 5.0% of ATB.[8][10]
In late January 2015, Unitel removed The Simpsons from its schedule in favor of the local edition of Calle 7, prompting protests in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, La Paz and Cochabamba against its removal. Within days, Unitel annnounced that the series would return to the channel from March 9 in its usual timeslot, which was between 4 and 6pm.[11]
From 2 April 2018, the channel launched its own high-definition signal within the Bolivian digital terrestrial television system in the test phase, until 15 April, when broadcasts officially started under the name of Unitel HD.[12] In June 2018, the channel broadcast live 32 matches of the 2018 Russia World Cup in HD, becoming the first broadcast of a World Cup in HD in Bolivia.
In March 2021, Unitel removed all series that aired past midnight (being replaced by Pare de Sufrir).
In the midst of the broadcast of the subnational elections, Unitel signed with WarnerMedia and Sony Pictures, broadcasting the series The Looney Tunes Show, Tom and Jerry, the Justice League and the library of Columbia Pictures, as well as Sony Pictures Animation.
Thanks to a strategic alliance signed in September 2022 with Canal Rural from Brazil, a localized version of the channel, Canal Rural Bolivia, launched on September 16, 2022, available on cable television and on Unitel's website.[13]
Network edit
Programming edit
Unitel's main news program is called Telepaís, with nationwide coverage and its own broadcast in the departments of Santa Cruz, Cochabamba and La Paz. The channel has owned the broadcasting rights for sporting events such as the Bolivian Professional Football League and the World Cups since 2002. However, it does not broadcast any league matches live, but rather resells the broadcasting rights to cable companies in Bolivia. In 2008, it broadcast the matches on cable in the trunk axis (Santa Cruz, La Paz, Cochabamba) and over-the-air in the rest of the country.[9]
The channel also broadcast various beauty pageants, such as Miss Santa Cruz, Miss Bolivia, Reina Hispanoamericana, Miss Universe and Miss World from 2001 to 2017.
Unitel launched a daily afternoon children's program, Chispitas, in 1998, presented by Fabiola Landivar, Angelica Mérida and the Chispitas doll, named after the show. It emulated the format of ATB's Sipiripi, before gaining an identity of its own, replacing the doll with a group of children doing choreographies and games. The format was replaced by Unitoons in the early 2000s, with most of the presenters returning, becoming a huge success. It ended in June 2005, being replaced by Chicostation.[16]
Since 2006, Unitel began broadcasting 24 hours of daily programming.
In 2007, Unitel defined itself as a channel where telenovelas weren't dominant in contrast to other channels. While the channel aired four telenovelas daily, Red Uno aired more, whereas Unitel specialized mainly in five movie slots, broadcasting approximately 38 movies per week.[8]
In mid-2013, it became the first Bolivian television channel to broadcast, with its own production, an international format from the production company Endemol, Yo Me Llamo Bolivia.
Since the 2014 general elections, the network premieres its special program Asi Decidimos during electoral times.
Since August 2014, the channel broadcasts the TVN's specialized gaming license program, called Calle 7 Bolivia.
At the end of February 2016, La Fábrica de Estrellas – Star Academy,[17] a singing reality show produced in association with Endemol and hosted by Anabel Angus and Angélica Mérida.
In 2018, the channel acquired transmission licenses for Bolivia for the 2018 Russian World Cup matches.
On 2 April 2018, the channel launched its own high-definition signal within the Bolivian digital terrestrial television system in a test phase, until 15 April, when it officially began broadcasting under the Unitel HD name.
In June 2018, the Unitel Network broadcasts live 32 matches of the Russia 2018 World Cup by open signal, becoming the first television channel to broadcast a football world cup in quality HD for the Bolivian territory.[18][19]
As of 16 July 2018, Red Unitel premieres Despéiname la vida, the first telenovela fiction produced in Bolivia. This teleseries is broadcast in prime time with Grisel Quiroga, Ronico Cuellar and Susy Diab as the main stars.
In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in Bolivia, the channel did not stop broadcasting Calle 7. The channel was forced to suspend broadcasts of the show on 3 April 2020.
On 11 July 2022, the transmission of MasterChef Bolivia begins, under the MasterChef kitchen franchise.[20] A second season premiered on 17 July 2023.[21]
Current programs edit
Original edit
- Chicostatión
- A Todo Deporte
- Decibeles
- El abogado del diablo
- Cine Aventura
Logos edit
- Logo for HD feed of the channel since 2018.
Announcers edit
- Waldo Montenegro (2009–present)[22]
- Juan Carlos Diaz (since 2014, narrator and announcer of Telepaís)
References edit
- ^ http://www.comunicar.info/despliegue.php?idnota=828&idseccion=59[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Noticias de Bolivia y el mundo".
- ^ "Chronik Boliviens: 25. Von 1978 bis zur Nueva Política Económica (1985)". payer.de. 19 September 2002. Archived from the original on 21 October 2002. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
- ^ "Medios y conflicto en Bolivia: Caminos para fomentar el papel constructivo de los medios en una gobernabilidad vulnerable" (PDF). International Media Support. 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 August 2022. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
- ^ ""NORMATIVA LEGAL DE DIFUSIÓN DE LOS PROGRAMAS ENLATADOS DE MEDIOS DE COMUNICACIÓN Y SU IMPACTO SOBRE EL COMPORTAMIENTO DE LA POBLACIÓN INFANTIL EN BOLIVIA"" (PDF). International Media Support. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
- ^ "Llave para la memoria, Testimonios y vivencias, 40 años del Círculo de Mujeres Periodistas de La Paz" (PDF). Friedrich Ebert Stiftung. 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2014. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
- ^ "TBT Una foto de hace 31 años, en la inauguración de Telesistema Boliviano Canal 2 en Oruro. ¿Los reconoces?" (in Spanish). www.facebook.com. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
- ^ a b c d e "FLUXO INTERNACIONAL DE FICÇÃO: A TELENOVELA BRASILEIRA NA BOLÍVIA" (PDF). Methodist University of São Paulo. 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Análisis de la Agenda Setting del Campo Político Periodístico de la Televisión Privada Vs. el Canal Oficial del Estado Boliviano. Estudio de Caso: Red Unitel, Canal 2 y Televisión Boliviana, Canal 7" (PDF). Higher University of San Andrés. 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 September 2018. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
- ^ Captura Research, 2007
- ^ . El Deber. 16 April 2018. Archived from the original on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ . Unitel. 16 April 2018. Archived from the original on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ . Lance Rural. 16 September 2022. Archived from the original on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ "A COMUNICAÇÃO IMPRESSA NA FRONTERIA BRASIL-BOLÍVIA" (PDF). Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ "IMPACTO SOCIAL DEL PROGRAMA "CRISTINA Y USTED" DE RADIO FIDES, EN LA AUDIENCIA DE LA CIUDAD DE LA PAZ EN 1999" (PDF). Higher University of San Andrés. 2019. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ "Breve historia de los programas infantiles en la TV boliviana". Foro RATEBOL. 24 September 2008. Archived from the original on 9 February 2024. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
- ^ "Unitel from Bolivia launches the reality-star academy co-produced with Endemol Shine Argentina". Produ.com. 26 May 2016. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
- ^ . Unitel. 28 May 2018. Archived from the original on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ . Unitel. 17 July 2018. Archived from the original on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ . Unitel. 27 June 2022. Archived from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ . Unitel. 4 July 2023. Archived from the original on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
- ^ "Waldo Montenegro".
External links edit
- UNITEL
- Canal Rural Bolivia