La Séptima: Spain's new public TV channel launches amid controversy

La Séptima: The new DTT channel born under suspicion

José Miguel Contreras, co-founder of Globomedia and La Sens, has registered the name and logo for a new free-to-air television channel that will occupy the license awarded to SIETE (Servicios Integrados de Entretenimiento Televisivo SL). The channel, which will not be called "Siete" but "La Séptima", has a launch deadline of November 2026. The news has triggered a flood of criticism in digital media and social networks, where it is labeled an electoral "chiringuito" (political outpost) and "government mouthpiece" just as the sector loses viewers rapidly.

A controversial name and a heavy past

"La Séptima" immediately evokes the seventh biblical plague—hail and fire—and there are those who point this out with irony. The choice has forced the rejection of "La Siete", a denomination already used by Mediaset between 2009 and 2014 for a telenovela channel closed by court order. The coincidence is not minor: that channel also emerged with a close relationship with political power, according to industry analysts.

The profile of the promoters reinforces suspicions. Contreras, a veteran of left-wing private television, repeats the pattern: first La Sens, now La Séptima. The difference is that the market has changed radically. Free-to-air DTT loses viewers every year to Netflix, YouTube, and Twitch. The average audience for traditional channels concentrates on people over 60, while young people migrate to ad-free platforms.

Who pays and why?

The discussion thread points to an opaque funding model. The license was granted by the Government to SIETE, and although it presents itself as private, commentators underline that SEPI (Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales) might have indirect participation. It is speculated that the channel will be a "Plan B" to reposition sympathetic journalists when the PP comes to government and restructures RTVE. Among the names already being considered are Javier Ruiz, Silvia Intxaurrondo, Àngels Barceló, Javier Aroca, and Julia Otero, all professionals with a pogre profile and extensive experience in public media.

"It begins to resemble American Protestant pastor televisions, tailored to their parish," summarizes one of the most shared analyses. In a saturated market, with shrinking advertising margins, opening a channel in 2026 can only be explained if the State supports it—via institutional advertising or direct subsidies—or if it responds to a political need to maintain a sympathetic platform.

The business of audiences in care homes

Ironically, critics point out that the competition will not be with Atresmedia or Mediaset, but with "the rest of regional broadcasters competing for leadership in care homes and hospitals." The joke hides an uncomfortable demographic fact: people over 60, who still watch linear television, are the segment that votes the most and is most loyal to traditional media. La Séptima targets this niche directly, aware that the elderly vote decides elections. It is not a marketing failure; it is a political strategy.

With these foundations, the channel will start in November with the label of "propaganda TV" and widespread skepticism about its economic viability. The disorienting data: while classic channels lose share year after year, the Government invests in creating a new one. Either it is an excellent business—for those who get paid—or it is pure electoral calculation. Neither option reassures the taxpayer.