A lifestyle and reality channel for Spanish-speaking television viewers has made its way to DirecTV.

HOLA! magazine and Atresmedia reached an agreement with the satellite company to launch ¡Hola! TV months after its September debut in the United States.

"DirecTV was able to see the channel's qualities, the value and offerings we bring, and they have been the first to launch the channel in the United States," ¡Hola! TV CEO Ignacio Sanz said, via 4-Traders.

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According to Sanz, ¡Hola! TV's expansion in the U.S. has been "complicated" because of a "much more mature market, competitive and tough." ¡Hola! TV apparently made a good impression on DirecTV as the channel's ratings across Latin America -- namely Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Puerto Rico, Uruguay and Venezuela -- ranked among the top 10 channels on the satellite company's entertainment tier.

The DirecTV agreement comes after ¡HOLA! TV expanded its affiliation to Telefónica, TuVes, Intercable DTH and even Aster for Dominican Republic viewers. Accounting only Latin American and Caribbean agreements, ¡HOLA! TV services 4.5 million subscribers. Expansion in Mexico is next for the company.

¡HOLA! TV, now on DirecTV, screens more than 500 annual hours of original programming courtesy of four programs based in Miami. One of the shows is "Mundo HOLA!" hosted by Colombian José Barraza. The one-hour magazine-style show features the lives of celebrities from various fields, such as movies, music, fashion, athletes and even royal families.

Half-hour shows are also showcased with Ana María Monroy's "HOLA! Diario," which maintains the entertainment element with news in Europe, Latin America and the U.S.

The Latin American edition of HOLA! magazine is also presented to U.S. viewers with the weekly "HOLALA!" Hosted by Irene Sánchez, she reviews the best feature stories published across the 10 editions of HOLA! magazine that spans across Latin America.

Sanz stated the channel is largely geared for women. As Multichannel noted, Sanz believes women will comprise 65 percent of its U.S. audience.

"The channel tends to be more feminine than masculine with women 18-45, who in the advertising world are the most desired audience, where tendencies start being formed, the consumption habits, and where there is the most buying power," Sanz said.

¡HOLA! TV may be using DirecTV as a "wait and see" approach before negotiating further television carriage deals with other cable and satellite providers.

"So far, DirecTV is the first affiliate, which we have come to an agreement, but we have been talking with others too. We expect to come to an agreement with most of them," Sanz said to Portada.

"We are pleased to be the first to introduce ¡HOLA! TV to our Spanish-speaking customers across the U.S.," said DirecTV's Programming and Content Vice President of Content and Programming Emma Brackett, via Portada. "¡HOLA! TV's refreshing take on entertaining human interest stories and original programming is a welcome addition to our Spanish-language programming lineup and will delight Hispanic customers everywhere."

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