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Univision Communications’ Trial Bumped .... Again

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The high-stakes showdown between two squabbling Spanish-language media behemoths has been postponed to Jan. 6. U.S. District Judge Judge Philip S. Gutierrez in Los Angeles set the new date this morning, making it the fourth time this year that the trial has been rescheduled.

Mexico City-based Grupo Televisa three years ago sued its longtime U.S. broadcast partner, Univision Communications Inc., for unpaid royalties and breach of contract. Televisa, which produces the wildly popular telenovelas that fuel Univision’s gigantic prime-time ratings, would desperately like a divorce. But, for now, it is locked in an unhappy and -- ironclad -- union.

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As part of its nuptials in 1992, Televisa is required to provide its novelas exclusively in the U.S. to Univision through 2017. But Televisa believes that it has been shortchanged by the long-term arrangement. Univision, meanwhile, says it has been paying Televisa fairly according to the agreement. Still, Televisa would like the ability to shop its shows to another network -- it thinks it could get a lot more by doing so -- or renegotiate the terms of their relationship.

Some observers in the Latino television industry, however, believe Mexico’s preeminent entertainment company is gunning for something bigger: Regaining an equity stake in Univision, the largest Spanish-language broadcaster in the U.S. (but that, of course, would require settlement talks -- and there’s no hint of that right now).

Televisa was a major shareholder in Univision until last year, when a group of investors, including Los Angeles billionaire Haim Saban, took the company private in a highly leveraged $13.7-billion deal.

-- Meg James

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