Pierluigi Gazzolo, CEO of TelevisaUnivision's ViX, will leave

Pierluigi Gazzolo, the TelevisaUnivision chief executive who helped build nascent streaming service ViX and bring it to profitability in just two years, plans to leave the company at the end of the year.

“I want you all to know how proud I am of everything we have achieved together with ViX – we exceeded viewership and revenue milestones this year and significantly expanded our footprint across platforms and regions to “To bring world-class entertainment to Spanish speakers worldwide.” And to top it all off, this week at our Q3 results we announced ViX's profitability – an amazing achievement based on the hard work and innovation of everyone in this organization, including “Our incredible partners from Televisa networks and studios in Mexico who have provided us with amazing content promotion,” Gazzolo said in a note to employees on Thursday. He added: “This turning point of progress is one that makes my personal transformation arc feel complete here – it is the right time for me to close this chapter, spend time re-energizing and figuring out what kind of adventure takes me will drive next.”

Gazzolo, who plans to leave in December, will leave a company in transition.

The Spanish-language media giant recently named a new CEO: Daniel Alegre, who holds senior positions at Google and Activision Blizzard. Earlier this week, he formulated a plan to bring two different parts of the company – created by the merger of the Univision broadcast network in the United States and Grupo Televisa's media production facilities in Mexico – into closer cooperation.

“Each of these has been around for more than 60 years, and while that creates a rich history, catalog and brand recognition, it also brings with it very established ways of operating,” Alegre said on a recent investor call. “We have a real opportunity to grow from two regional companies to a global company.” He also called for an evolution from “a company with isolated linear and streaming businesses to a content-first company that is platform agnostic.”

What this might mean for ViX's leadership remains to be seen.

The decision to leave is said to have been Gazzolo's own decision. With ViX's quest for early profitability fulfilled, the executive can embark on a new adventure.

ViX initially debuted as PrendeTV, and Gazzolo was involved in recruiting celebrities such as Sofia Vergara to the service as the company's plans became more ambitious.

He is expected to work with Rafael Urbina, ViX's chief operating officer, and the rest of the service's leadership team until his departure. Alegre did not say whether he had identified a new executive to lead ViX.