Telemundo Station Group: Large investment in local stations reflects Comcast’s commitment towards broadcast and the Hispanic market

PRODU met with Manuel Abud, president of the Telemundo Station Group, at his offices in Hialeah, Florida. Abud has been heading the division for a year and a half.“We are investing all across the country. This reflects Comcast’s commitment towards broadcast and the Hispanic market,” said Abud emphasizing that in all his years at Telemundo, he has never seen such a large investment in this area.“Last year we added over 1,000 hours of local programming. There’s a clear commitment to expand and improve our news offer. On the technology front, we upgraded almost all our newscasts to HD. The only exception is Dallas, which is soon moving to a state-of-the-art building. Los Angeles is also moving to upgraded facilities,” he said.Abud also pointed out Telemundo opened a Business Development office in Mexico.“A large portion of the advertising revenue comes from Mexican companies that do business in the U.S., and hence their planning takes place in Mexico. Some of the initial clients are local tourism corporations. We will be the main users of the office, but it will also represent Telemundo Network, mun2 and Telemundo Internacional,” said Abud.He was also enthusiastic about the arrival of Joe Uva to NBCUniversal. “This will greatly benefit Telemundo, but at a more macro level, it will strengthen the Hispanic agenda at NBCUniversal,” he added.