The Allen Media Group, owner of Weather Channel en Español, is pulling the plug on the first 24/7 U.S. Spanish-language free streaming weather news network.
Los Angeles-based AMG, founded by media entrepreneur Byron Allen, has been undergoing a series of layoffs across all of its divisions since earlier this year, aimed at positioning the company for future growth, as reported in May by the Los Angeles Times. Other layoffs took place in October.
Now, further reductions set to impact the Spanish-language weather streamer, launched in May 2022.
An AMG spokesperson provided the following official statement to Media Moves regarding the shutdown:
“As part of Allen Media Group’s extensive cost-cutting measures, The Weather Channel en Español will cease operations on December 31, 2024.”
Meteorologists from Univision and Telemundo stations across the country were recruited to get The Weather Channel en Español off the ground, under the supervision of the unit’s Editor-in-Chief Sussy Ruiz.
The network featured regional and local newscasts, as well as content focused on the U.S., the Caribbean, and Latin America. Last year, it expanded its programming to include a weekday morning show.
In January, the network added meteorologist Eduardo Rodríguez to the team.
The spokesperson did not address the fate of the approximately 15 staff members, but all indications suggest that most will be laid off at the end of the year.
The network, available on various platforms, including YouTube, Roku, ViX, and Local Now, currently has about 113,000 social media followers. There’s currently no publicly available information available regarding the weather streamer’s viewership base.