I’m not sure how others are reacting to this news, but I am a bit stunned at the MTV Tr3s announcement. Stunned, excited but with nervous trepidation. How are they going to pull this off without making it utterly annoying?

Music network MTV announced today it will launch a new English-Spanish hybrid channel. The new outlet will be dubbed MTV Tr3s, and will feature music and other programming appealing to the 12- to 34-year-old US Latino demographic.

As others have commented on a previous post, the whole Spanglish thing can be very irritating to some, especially with regard to people who are talking at you (as in an advertisement) rather than in the course of a normal conversation. It’s almost like they are trying too hard to be bi-cultural. Normally, I’d say “when not done right, can be irritating”, but the thing is here that I don’t know if it can be done right if you don’t just naturally speak that way. I mean are the VJs going to switch back and forth mid-sentence, or are some going to speak Spanish and some in English? I think the key here is that the tone needs to be natural and not self aware, a feat which may be impossible for MTV. Let’s wait and see.

Aside from the Spanglish aspect, bounding for the 18-34 US Latino market = very smart. Let’s see if advertisers’ creative can keep up.
Via TV.com
Related: Media Week, Reuters

Technorati Tags: MTV, spanglish, latino marketing, television, TV, cable, music, hispanic marketing, Tr3s

In response to the Latino market boom, it seems television networks are trending towards more Spanish-language programming, or at least the option to watch in Spanish if desired. From HispanicBusiness.com via HispanicTips, this release from the Discovery Channel, who entered the market early and has managed to maintain momentum over the years:

Discovery Launches First U.S. Spanish-Language Networks to Focus on Women, Children, and Families

MIAMI, Sept. 26 /PRNewswire/ — Discovery U.S. Hispanic Networks, the leading provider of high-quality, real-world Spanish-language programming, is expanding its product offerings for the U.S. Hispanic audience beyond its existing network, Discovery en Espanol, by launching two new networks, creating the first Spanish-language channels to focus on the interests of women, children and families.

Discovery Kids en Espanol and Discovery Travel & Living (Viajar y Vivir) will provide stimulating programming in the Discovery tradition of excellence, giving viewers more choices in the family-friendly and lifestyle entertainment categories.

Building upon Discovery’s expertise in providing culturally relevant programming in 23
Spanish-speaking countries worldwide, coupled with the popularity of Discovery en Espanol in the U.S., the content is closely tailored to meet the viewing preferences of the Hispanic audience. Discovery Kids en Espanol and Discovery Travel & Living (Viajar y Vivir) will each feature a mix of original productions and some of the best Latin
American shows making their U.S. debuts. The networks are not SAP feeds of their English-language counterparts; rather they are unique channels that directly speak to the U.S. Hispanic audience with “transcreated” programming, corresponding to their interests through language, music, graphics and popular Latin American personalities.

HispanicBusiness.com READ MORE

Tags: latino marketing, hispanic marketing,television