Tech ticker: Hulu launches Spanish-language programming; Glam Media IPO next year; EU accepts IBM concessions in antitrust probe

Finn Torode
December 15, 2011

Hulu launches Spanish-language programming

Hoping to attract a rapidly growing U.S. Latino audience, online video site Hulu has launched a Spanish-language programming service with popular shows from networks Univision, Estrella TV and Azteca America.

Spanish-language programming has been scattered across different Internet sites. And some of the most popular programs, including the spicy telenovelas produced by Grupo Televisa of Mexico, were not available online in the U.S.

Glam Media IPO on schedule for early next year

Glam Media, a Brisbane-based online advertising company focused on women, plans to file for an IPO by the end of the second quarter and is considering Goldman Sachs or Morgan Stanley to lead the sale, three people with knowledge of the matter said.

The company, which has already completed a “bake-off” where bankers compete for the deal, is close to hiring the firms to handle the transaction, according to the people who declined to be identified because the deliberations are private. Bank of America would most likely assist in the IPO, they said.

Glam, founded in 2004, has benefited from advertisers’ willingness to pay higher rates to reach specific audiences.

The company’s clients include Nike, ABC network and Victoria’s Secret. Glam has a network of more than 2,500 publishers, which run the ads.

EU accepts IBM concessions in antitrust probe

The European Union’s competition watchdog says it has accepted concessions made by IBM to make it easier for rivals to perform maintenance on its mainframe computers and is closing its investigation of the company.

The European Commission last year opened a probe into whether IBM was illegally restricting other companies from providing profitable maintenance services on its mainframe computers.

In September, Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM offered to make it easier for rivals to get spare parts and technical information.

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