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When a company's debts stretch across borders, sometimes the restructuring plan needs a legal passport too. TV Azteca, the Spanish-language television giant, has filed for Chapter 15 relief in New York bankruptcy court, seeking U.S. recognition of its ongoing Mexican restructuring while asking for protection from litigation the company says threatens its broader creditor base.

The Company's Case for Protection

In a statement filed Wednesday, TV Azteca CEO Rafael Rodriguez Sanchez explained that the Chapter 15 filing would allow the company to enforce its Mexican insolvency proceeding within the U.S. legal system, shielding it from creditors attempting to pursue recovery outside the boundaries of its official restructuring plan. This petition arrives months after TV Azteca first sought court protection in Mexico to address roughly $1.47 billion in outstanding debt.

A Company Framing Crisis as Strategy

"This step reaffirms TV Azteca's commitment to an orderly and transparent reorganization aimed at preserving the continuity of its operations and strengthening its long-term financial position," the company said in a public statement — language designed to project stability even as the underlying numbers tell a more precarious story.

How the Financial Strain Began

Mexico City-based TV Azteca launched its original restructuring case in Mexico back in March, as the company struggled against a slump in advertising revenue and intensifying competition from streaming services. Adding further pressure, collection efforts by U.S. creditors have compounded the strain on the company's finances.

Officially Declared Insolvent

In June, a Mexican court formally declared TV Azteca commercially insolvent, with the company's aggregate debts totaling approximately $1.47 billion at the time, according to Sanchez. Earlier this month, an official overseeing the restructuring filed an initial list of claims against the debtor, with the Mexican court expected to later enter a judgment ranking those claims once they become final, the statement said.

Building a Bridge for American Creditors

TV Azteca's Chapter 15 proceeding is designed specifically to help U.S. creditors participate meaningfully in the Mexican restructuring process. It will also serve as a shield against litigation in New York tied to roughly $400 million in U.S. notes, according to Sanchez.

A Legal Battle Years in the Making

This isn't TV Azteca's first brush with U.S. bankruptcy courts. Back in 2023, certain noteholders initiated an involuntary Chapter 11 case against the company, though a New York bankruptcy judge dismissed it shortly afterward. The litigation, however, refused to simply fade away. After the underlying notes matured in August 2024, Bank of New York Mellon filed a complaint against TV Azteca seeking approximately $580 million in unpaid principal and interest.

A Jurisdictional Dispute Still Unresolved

A New York federal judge subsequently ordered TV Azteca to dismiss certain Mexican proceedings connected to the U.S. notes, ruling that the underlying debt documents granted exclusive jurisdiction to New York courts. TV Azteca appealed that decision to the Second Circuit, where the matter currently remains pending — an unresolved thread now woven directly into the Chapter 15 filing's broader strategy.

What the Filing Actually Protects

According to the company, the Chapter 15 proceeding will protect TV Azteca's assets located in the U.S. while simultaneously allowing American creditors to assert their rights within the Mexican restructuring proceeding — essentially building a formal channel connecting the two legal systems rather than leaving them to collide.

The Company Behind the Curtain

TV Azteca is owned by conglomerate Grupo Salinas, founded by Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego. The company has attributed its financial struggles to sweeping changes within the television industry, the rise of digital media platforms, and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on both sales and advertising budgets. Beyond its core debt load, TV Azteca also carries approximately $240 million in additional debt under a separate facility with AlterBank Ltd.

A New Legal Team Steps In

"This Chapter 15 filing represents a new path toward reorganizing and consolidating our proceedings, led by Sullivan & Cromwell, our new U.S. law firm," a spokesman for Grupo Salinas told Law360 — signaling a fresh legal strategy now guiding the company's efforts to untangle its cross-border financial obligations.

TV Azteca is represented by Robert J. Giuffra Jr., Sergio J. Galvis, James L. Bromley and Christian P. Jensen of Sullivan & Cromwell LLP.

For a media company once defined by its dominance of Mexican airwaves, this Chapter 15 filing marks an attempt to ensure that its financial reckoning plays out on its own terms — coordinated across two countries, rather than fractured by competing courtrooms an ocean apart.