Mitu exited

Market position

mitú has been described as the largest Latino digital media company on YouTube and, in 2016, the largest Hispanic-focused digital channel in the world by monthly views, with the largest global digital reach among companies targeting young Hispanics according to co-founder Roy Burstin. Its $7 million sale price in 2020, against a reported $85 million valuation two years earlier, was characterized as part of a broader consolidation in the Latinx digital media sector.

The company positions its authenticity with Latino audiences as its core asset, with content produced by teams drawn from the same demographic it targets, and has sought to extend from a purely content brand into a cultural brand spanning media, merchandise and community.

Go-to-market

Distribution is through owned-and-operated web properties (wearemitu.com), social video platforms including YouTube and Facebook, a multichannel network of partner creator channels, a Latino TV channel (Mitu TV), and direct-to-consumer merchandise via mitushop.com. Brand advertisers are reached through branded content partnerships and programmatic ad products.

Young U.S. Hispanic and Latino audiences consuming English- and Spanish-language content, plus advertisers and brands seeking to reach that demographic. On the supply side, the network works with Latino digital creators and partner YouTube channels.

Geography

Headquartered in downtown Los Angeles, with a Colombia office that was closed following the 2020 acquisition. Content addresses U.S. Latino audiences as well as Latin American topics.

History

After launching in 2012, mitú grew its multichannel network to roughly 40 million subscribers across about 1,200 partner channels by 2014, the same year Disney's Maker Studios signed a production pact with the company and a $10 million round was raised. By 2016 it was serving about 2 billion monthly video views on Facebook and YouTube, described at the time as the largest Hispanic-focused digital channel in the world. In 2018 Acevedo and several senior executives departed during a reorganization tied to Maker Studios being folded into the Disney Digital Network; in July 2018 the company laid off about 30% of its staff, shut down its longer-form premium productions and cut its marketing team, with CEO Herb Scannell resigning after ten months and president/co-founder Acevedo moving to an advisory role. Co-founder Roy Burstin, who had left in September 2017 and served as entrepreneur-in-residence at Upfront Ventures, returned as CEO in November 2018 alongside a $10 million raise. In February 2020, Latido Networks, a division of GoDigital Media Group, acquired mitú, its e-commerce shop and its Mitu TV channel, and mitú was integrated into Latido's portfolio rather than continuing as an independent publisher.

Risks & controversies

Following the Latido Networks acquisition, mitú faced allegations over the closure of its Colombia office: roughly 12 employees, including finance and merchandising staff, were asked to resign voluntarily and were rehired under new contracts before being terminated, which former employees said cost them severance and benefits required under Colombian labor law, with no compensation provided on termination. In January 2024, several YouTubers — including Holly of the "Superholly" channel, with more than 3.39 million subscribers — publicly accused Mitú Inc. of financial mismanagement and non-payment, alleging the company delayed creator payments and deducted between zero and more than 40% of creators' earnings after promising collaborations and higher channel revenue; the company had not responded publicly to the allegations. The business also faced structural pressure from the 2018 shutdowns of Verizon's Go90 and Comcast's Watchable, both buyers of mitú original series, and from the difficulty of scaling premium content profitably.