Telefe

Telefe (acronym for Televisión Federal) is a television station located in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The station is owned and operated by Paramount Global through Televisión Federal S.A. Telefe is also one of Argentina's six national television networks. Its studios are located in Martínez, Buenos Aires, adjacent to the corporate headquarters; its transmitter is located at the Alas Building. In areas of Argentina where a Telefe station isn't receivable over-the-air, it is available on satellite and select cable systems. Telefe also has regional stations across the country and an international network (Telefe Internacional) which is available in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Oceania. The history of Telefe stretches back to 1957, when a group of alumni and lawyers from the Colegio El Salvador led by Fr. Héctor Grandetti, founded the company Difusión Contemporánea S.A. (Contemporary Broadcasting S.A.). This company, known as DiCon for short, submitted a bid in the licensing of two new television channels in Buenos Aires, one on channel 11 and the other on channel 13. On April 28, 1958, DiCon won the license for channel 11. Original plans to build the new station in the Colegio El Salvador facilities fell through. Eventually, facilities were secured, and Canal 11 finally was able to launch from its first headquarters in San Cristóbal, Buenos Aires. The station finally launched on July 21, 1961, at 8:58 p.m. under Teleonce. Financial problems forced the station to seek a backer, which would turn out to be ABC from the United States. ABC and DiCon formed Telerama S.R.L., a group that allowed DiCon to upgrade and expand its studio facilities. During its first decade, Teleonce aired shows like Música en el Aire, Cosa Juzgada, Tato Siempre en Domingo, El Reporter Esso, Radiolandia en TV, Operación Ja Ja and No Toca Botón. Through the 1960s, the family-oriented programming of the channel could not compete successfully against Canal 9 and did not have great financial backing like Canal 13.