Providence-based LIN TV Corp., the parent of LIN Television Corporation, announced Monday the creation of WAPA-America, a new Hispanic programming service for satellite and cable distribution in the United States. Programmed out of WAPA-TV, LIN TV’s station in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the service will include current Puerto Rican news and entertainment shows, as well as classic programming from WAPA’s extensive prime time library.
WAPA-America will initially be available on DIRECTV, which will be the exclusive satellite distributor of the service through Jan. 31, 2006. Beginning this Sept. 1, the service will be available nationally through DIRECTV PARA TODOS programming. LIN TV has received considerable interest from various cable service providers, a Business Wire release said.
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LIN TV will service WAPA-America out of its operating hub in Springfield, Mass., which the company expects will minimize additional operating expense.
Gary R. Chapman, LIN TV’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, said in the release: “WAPA-America is another example of our company capitalizing on existing valuable assets to create new ones that can potentially contribute to our growth. Given WAPA’s success in San Juan, we believe that WAPA-America will be a highly successful programming service for the U.S. Hispanic market. We anticipate that Hispanic audiences, particularly the substantial Puerto Rican populations in markets such as New York, Chicago, Boston and Orlando, will regard this service as an important means to stay current with local news and entertainment programming. We are proud to launch WAPA-America on DIRECTV, whose interest in our new service speaks volumes about its potential.”
“DIRECTV PARA TODOS customers will be the first to see WAPA-America in the United States and will now have access to even more Spanish-language programming that is both culturally relevant and entertaining,” said Stephanie Campbell, executive vice president, programming, DIRECTV, Inc. “We are pleased to serve the Puerto Rican community with programming that is direct from their home country, and to continue our commitment to offering DIRECTV PARA TODOS customers the best and most diverse lineup of Spanish-language programming available.”
LIN TV Corp. is an owner and operator of network-affiliated television stations in mid-sized markets. The company operates 23 television stations in 13 markets.
DIRECTV is a digital multichannel television service provider with more than 13 million customers.
