About Televen

Televen

Overview

Televen, legally Corporación Televen C.A., is a Venezuelan national free-to-air television network headquartered in the Horizonte neighbourhood of Caracas, which is why it is also known as the Canal de Horizonte. Launched in July 1988 by Omar Camero Zamora, it was created as an alternative to the two dominant private channels of the day, Radio Caracas Televisión (RCTV) and Venevisión, with a schedule aimed in part at middle-class viewers who did not usually watch much television. Its programming mixes talk shows, sport, films, series — mainly American, Brazilian, Colombian, Mexican and United States Hispanic productions — and telenovelas, and in the 1990s it became known for anime.

Televen is one of only two private national general-entertainment networks still broadcasting terrestrially in Venezuela, alongside Venevisión, after RCTV lost its licence in 2007. It broadcasts on channel 10 in Caracas and on terrestrial channels across the country, and it was an early adopter of high-definition production in Venezuela, celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2013 with a fully high-definition production operation that its distributor described as unique on Venezuelan broadcast television. Its homepage, fetched on 24 October 2026 carrying items dated that same day, confirms a channel still operating with a daily schedule.

For Venezuelan viewers, Televen is the third historic private network: younger than Venevisión and RCTV, more eclectic in its programming, and a channel whose history includes both commercial success and political controversy, notably around the April 2002 coup attempt, when it suspended its opinion programmes during the suspension of constitutional guarantees.

History

Televen's test signal began on 12 February 1988 on channel 10 in Caracas, transmitting music videos accompanied by the red sphere that has identified the channel ever since, symbolising the number 10 of its signal. The channel officially went on the air on 3 July 1988, with its first commercial transmission following on 10 July 1988, opening with the film Mandela and a first commercial break of 25 advertising spots — reported as the longest commercial break in the history of Venezuelan television, and a sign of the advertiser support the new project enjoyed. Televen was inaugurated as the Televen Corporation on 10 July 1988 by Omar Camero Zamora and T Radioven, S.A.

In its initial stage, Televen's self-produced output covered only the metropolitan area of Caracas. The channel expanded quickly: in November 1988 its press department announced that its signal would go on air in Zulia and Falcón, and on 20 December it expanded to Guarenas and Guatire. In March 1989 its vice-president of production, Jorge Font, announced the acquisition of the Cedros and Macaracuay theatres for use as television studios. That same year, Televen became the first television network in Venezuela to air nudity during prime time, a marker of the more open programming stance it cultivated as an alternative to its rivals.

The channel's early ownership was contested in public. On 18 January 1989, Omar Camero Zamora called a news conference to clarify that the network had not been sold, but that 33 percent of the company's stock had been negotiated by a group of businessmen judicially managed by Pedro Tinoco. With the help of investors in the early 1990s, including the television personality Guillermo "Fantástico" González, Televen expanded its coverage to all of Venezuela and attracted a larger audience share than the state network Venezolana de Televisión, while remaining behind RCTV and Venevisión.

Televen's political history includes the turbulent days of February 1992, when, in light of the suspension of constitutional guarantees following the events of 4 February, it suspended its opinion programmes. A decade later, during the April 2002 crisis, Televen was again at the centre of controversy over media coverage, as were all of Venezuela's private channels. In the years that followed, as the Chávez government tightened its control over broadcasting and RCTV was taken off the air in 2007, Televen survived as one of the remaining private national networks, adapting its news output to the new political environment.

The channel's technical development continued. On 15 June 1993 Televen put into service its largest antenna — a tower 150 metres high, with 24 transmission panels and 30 kilowatts of power — which allowed its signal to reach all of Zulia. By its 25th anniversary in 2013 it had expanded its production content to high definition, and its distributor described it as the only television network in Venezuela with that capacity on broadcast television. Today it broadcasts in 1080i high definition, downscaled to 480i for its standard-definition feed, from its Horizonte headquarters in the Sucre municipality of Miranda state.

Programming and Content

Televen's schedule is general entertainment with a distinctive mix. Its talk shows have been a signature strand, most famously Aló Ciudadano, hosted by Leopoldo Castillo, which was presented as the opposition counterpart to Hugo Chávez's Aló Presidente and aired on both Televen and Globovisión. Its news output, led by its El Noticiero bulletin, covers Venezuelan and international stories, and its sports coverage includes Venezuelan football and baseball as well as international events.

The channel's entertainment output has always been eclectic: films, American series, Brazilian, Colombian, Mexican and United States Hispanic telenovelas, and, in the 1990s, anime, which gave it a younger audience than its rivals. That eclecticism was deliberate — Televen positioned itself from the start as an alternative for viewers, including middle-class audiences, who did not see themselves in the programming of RCTV and Venevisión. Its current schedule, visible on its homepage in October 2026, continues that mix of news, entertainment and sport, updated daily.

Televen's streaming offer extends its broadcast schedule: its webcast, available through its app, is offered within Venezuela, and its website carries programme information, news and video. For viewers inside the country, the channel remains a daily presence on free-to-air television.

Audience and Reach

Televen is a national network, broadcast terrestrially on channel 10 in Caracas, with listings varying by region, and on terrestrial channels across Venezuela. A listing of Venezuelan television networks records 27 full-power affiliates for the channel, reflecting its national footprint. Its signal reaches audiences in Caracas and the regions, and its cable and satellite carriage extends it further.

The channel's audience has historically been the urban middle class, the viewers its founders said were underserved by the two dominant networks. Its talk shows and its anime strand in the 1990s both spoke to that positioning, and its news output has kept it relevant to politically engaged viewers. No recent audited audience figures for the channel are published, and this profile does not assert any. What is documented is its survival and continuity: from a Caracas-only channel in 1988 to a national network still broadcasting daily in October 2026, Televen has outlasted RCTV and remains one of the pillars of Venezuelan private television.

Digital Presence

Televen's website, televen.com, is its main digital outlet, carrying programme information, news and video, and its homepage was carrying items dated 24 October 2026 when it was last checked for this profile. The channel also offers a webcast through its app, available only in Venezuela, which streams its broadcast signal to viewers who watch on phones and computers rather than on television sets.

The channel is active on social platforms, where clips of its programmes and news output reach younger audiences. Its digital operation, like that of other Venezuelan broadcasters, has had to adapt to the country's economic crisis and to the migration of audiences online, but its daily-updated homepage shows a channel that continues to publish and broadcast every day.

Ownership and Organisation

Televen is owned by Omar Nicolás Camero Zamora, its founder, and is operated by Corporación Televen C.A. Its headquarters are in the Horizonte neighbourhood of Caracas, in the Sucre municipality of Miranda state. The channel's organisation reflects its status as a national network: studios and production facilities in Caracas, a newsroom producing its daily bulletins, and transmission infrastructure that has grown from a single Caracas transmitter in 1988 to a national network.

The channel's ownership history includes the 1989 negotiation of a third of its stock to a group of businessmen judicially managed by Pedro Tinoco, which its president publicly clarified at the time, and the investment in the early 1990s that funded its national expansion. Unlike Venevisión, which belongs to the Cisneros group, Televen has remained associated with its founder's family, and its identity as an independent private network — neither state-owned nor part of a larger conglomerate — is part of its character.

Contact and Availability

Televen is headquartered in Caracas, Venezuela, and broadcasts in Spanish as a free-to-air network on channel 10 in Caracas and on terrestrial channels nationally, in 1080i high definition. Its website is televen.com, where its programme information and news are published daily, and its broadcast stream is available through its app within Venezuela. Its news bulletins and entertainment schedule air daily, and the channel remains on air as of October 2026.