• by Erik Sass , June 5, 2012

Univision is launching a new digital video network on Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Live, UVideos, which will be available to Xbox 360 Live Gold subscribers, the company announced today at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles.

UVideos, which offers video content in Spanish and English, will go live in the fourth quarter of 2012.

UVideos will give authenticated users on-demand access to thousands of hours of entertainment, sports, movies and music, in both short- and long-form.

The service incorporates a social discovery feature, allowing users to see what friends are watching and follow Univision personalities on social media sites. It will be optimized for Xbox 360 with voice and motion control via Kinect.

According to figures cited by Univision, Hispanics are eager users of media technology, including gaming consoles: 36% of U.S. Hispanics own or play Xbox compared to 28% of non-Hispanics. Within the population of Xbox owners, 45% of Hispanics play Xbox Live on the Internet, compared to 35% of non-Hispanic Xbox owners.

UVideos is the latest in a series of new platforms and products launched by Univision.

Last week, Univision announced plans to launch a national, Spanish-language AM radio network featuring local, national and international news. The new network, Univision America, will include AM stations in nine major Univision markets: Miami, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, McAllen, TX, El Paso, San Antonio, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

In May, Univision and ABC News unveiled a plan to launch a new English-language TV news channel targeting bilingual Hispanic-Americans, which is scheduled to launch sometime next year. In fall 2011, Univision made its content available to Clear Channel’s iHeartRadio, including music, sports, and talk formats, as well as leading AM and FM Spanish-language radio personalities. In October, iHeartRadio itself became available on Xbox Live.