Spain's Government Awards New National TV License to Prisa-Linked Consortium, Sparking Political Cronyism Allegations

The License Award

Spain's Council of Ministers approved the adjudication of a new national Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) license on Tuesday, May 26, 2026. The license was awarded to Servicios Integrados de Entretenimiento Televisivo SL (SIETE), a consortium administered by Andrés Varela Entrecanales and linked to a group of Prisa shareholders clustered around Global Alconaba. The other major candidate was Mediaset, which already holds eight DTT frequencies in Spain.

The license is granted for a period of 15 years and is renewable for the same term, provided the requirements of Law 13/2022 are met. The consortium now has a maximum of six months to launch the channel, targeting a debut in the autumn of 2026.

As a consequence of that technical plan, a competition was called. Two offers were received, one from the Mediaset group and another from a group called Servicios Integrados de Entretenimiento Televisivo. And that competition has been resolved in a timely and normal manner and this second company has won.

The Consortium and Its Backers

The winning consortium SIETE is composed of four major shareholders, each with a 25% stake. Three of them are already grouped within the Prisa group: Andrés Varela, Diego Prieto, and Adolfo Utor. The fourth partner is Argentine businessman José Luis Manzano, part of the Integra group which holds a majority stake in the Telefé channel, though sources clarify that Telefé itself is not involved in the project.

José Miguel Contreras, the founder of Globomedia and La Sexta, is participating as a strategic advisor. The first officially announced hire for the project is Luis Morales Losada, who will serve as Production Manager, bringing experience from Grupo Mediapro.

Political and Judicial Connections

The timing of the award has drawn intense scrutiny, coming just one week after former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero was indicted by Judge José Luis Calama. Several articles highlight a connection through businessman Daniel Romero-Abreu Kaup, a member of the Global Alconaba shareholder group. Romero-Abreu is the founder of Thinking Heads Group, a firm that appears in Judge Calama's order as one of the entities that paid Zapatero.

According to the judicial order, Thinking Heads made 37 transfers to Zapatero between May 2021 and December 2025, totaling 681,318 euros for mediation, strategic advisory, and academic activities. Zapatero personally received 649,552 euros from Thinking Heads Group SL and 31,766.04 euros from its US subsidiary.

A Strategy for Political Survival

Multiple sources describe the new channel as a strategic move by the government to secure a sympathetic media outlet. José Miguel Contreras is reported to have directly explained to Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez the importance of having a television project with a "Sanchista DNA" that would serve as an infallible loudspeaker for critical messages, especially with polls showing diminishing options for Sánchez to remain in power.

Contreras knows that with Sánchez still in power, however weakened he may be, the capacity to pressure friendly private companies—especially those with SEPI participation—is very high and would guarantee them plenty of fuel for the launch.

The Prisa Internal Battle

The license award is the culmination of a fierce internal battle within Grupo Prisa. In 2024, Contreras was named director of content for Prisa Media with the goal of leading the group's return to national television. However, in early 2025, Prisa's largest shareholder, Joseph Oughourlian of Amber Capital, halted the project and dismissed Contreras, considering the launch of a DTT channel to be financial suicide for a group with 750 million euros in debt. Oughourlian also did not want to assume the reputational cost of turning the group into a markedly partisan platform.

After being sidelined, Contreras and the Spanish shareholders of Prisa regrouped outside the company's structure to pursue the license independently, ultimately succeeding with the government's backing.

Programming Ambitions

The new channel, which has not yet been officially named but is considering "Siete" or "La Séptima," aims to compete directly with Spain's six major national broadcasters. Its programming will be built on original national production, live broadcasting, and current affairs. The consortium emphasizes that the channel will be the flagship of a broader multimedia platform, with digital content distributed across all available windows.

The project's defining element will be the presence of major communication professionals, each leading their own space, though the consortium insists it seeks a conjunction of diverse personalities rather than mere personalism.