Mediaset España has announced a key change at the top of the company, appointing Mario Rodríguez Valeras as its new president. The move follows the departure of Cristina Garmendia, who stepped down last week after more than eight years in the role.

Rodríguez, who had served as Corporate Director General and Head of Institutional Relations, brings decades of experience within the company and a deep understanding of the regulatory framework governing the audiovisual sector.

Rodríguez joined the organisation in 1998, when the company was still known as Gestevisión Telecinco, after spending seven years at the law firm of Santiago Muñoz Machado.  In 2000 he was appointed secretary of the Board of Directors and three years later became the company’s secretary general. During that period he established the organisation’s legal advisory structure and consolidated several departments under a single corporate framework. His career continued to progress steadily and, in 2010, he was named Corporate Director General, a position he has held until now. Over the past decade Rodríguez has been closely involved in several key milestones for Mediaset España, including the group’s stock market flotation, the acquisition of Cuatro, and the granting of multiple digital terrestrial television licences that expanded the company’s broadcasting portfolio.

Rodríguez has also been an active representative of the company in institutional and regulatory arenas. He has frequently served as the public face of Mediaset before government bodies and national regulators, while contributing to the development of several regulatory frameworks for the television and audiovisual industries.

Beyond the company, he has held various positions within the sector. Among them, he served as a member of the Advisory Council on Telecommunications, vice-president of UTECA — the association representing Spain’s commercial free-to-air television broadcasters — and currently sits on the board of the Association of Commercial Television and Video on Demand Services in Europe.

Garmendia, who had led Mediaset España since 2017, explained in her farewell statement that the decision to step down came after a period of reflection. She said she felt it was the right moment to begin a new stage of her professional life and devote her full attention to other areas of activity linked to innovation and their positive impact on the economy and society.

“I do so with the conviction and reassurance that Mediaset España continues to move forward firmly as one of Spain’s leading audiovisual groups and, as part of MFE–MediaForEurope, towards a promising pan-European future,” she said, thanking colleagues and staff for their support during her tenure.

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Tags: mediaset, MFE, spain