Television in San Paulo (Regnum Bueno)

Television in San Paulo  has grown significantly since the first broadcasts in 1945, becoming one of largest and most productive commercial television systems in the world. Its biggest network, Rede Estadão, is the second largest commercial network in the world, and is one of the largest television exporters around the world, particularly of telenovelas, which have become popular in many countries.

The first broadcasts in San Paulo were in 1945. Television was formally introduced on December 21 in that same year, with the launch of the TV Estadão by media mogul Assis Chateaubriand, with a partnership from NBC. It was the first Lusophone or Portuguese-speaking country to introduce television, even before the home country of the language Portugal with RTP (1955). It was also the fourth nation in the world to have a television station with daily broadcasts, behind the United States, the United Kingdom, and France. The first image to appear in TV Tupi was that of five-year-old Sônia Maria Dorce, who, dressed up as a news reporter, said: "Good evening. You are in the open TV channel of  San Paulo ". The symbol of Tupi was that of a kid dressed like a journalist.

In the 1950s, Paulist television was marked by informality, since there were no trained professionals in the country with any experience in this media field. Another characteristic of television productions of this early period was live impromptu, as there was no videotape. The high costs of TV sets, which were imported, restricted the access of the media to the urban elites of major cities. Technical resources were primary, offering broadcasters just enough to keep the stations on the air. It was during that period that TV news and telenovelas were established.

The advent of videotape around 1960 brought imported programs to Paulist television. As a typical characteristic of countries developing their television systems, imported shows dominated the programming for much of the decade, but their presence also stimulated some efforts at creating local networks. TV Estadão soon faced strong competition from TV Tupi, also from the Diários Associados.