What is "programadora"

In Colombian broadcasting, a programadora (literally programmer) is a company that produces television programs, especially for the public-commercial Canal Uno (and, until 2003, Canal A/Segunda Cadena).

The Colombian television model from 1955 to the late 1990s, known as the sistema mixto ("mixed system"), relied on programadoras as the sole producers of programs that aired on the two major channels. Following the introduction of two national private television channels to the country in the late 1990s, the recession of that same time period and a resulting combination of falling ratings and declining advertising revenues, the programadoras went into a tailspin that led to many closing in bankruptcy or becoming production companies for the private networks. By 2003, only seven programadoras were left on Canal Uno; there are currently four.