Category: Broadcast

As per IDC’s Worldwide Semiannual Telecom Services Tracker, spending on telecom and pay TV services in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region reached $149 billion in 2024, increasing 7.7% year over year as compared to worldwide growth of 2.2%. IDC expects the growth momentum of telecom and pay TV services spending in the MEA region to continue, with year-over-year growth of 7.3% in 2025 to reach a total of $159.9 billion. However, the possible impact of ongoing geopolitical developments in the region had not been fully assessed at the time this data was published.

The MEA telecom market reported the fastest post-COVID growth in the year 2024, with a notable jump from the previous year. The growth can be attributed to ongoing investments by telecom operators to cater to the potential demand for data services in underpenetrated markets, particularly in Africa, through expanding the coverage of cellular and fiber networks. The growth can also be attributed to sustained demand for telecom services despite operators’ tariff increases to counter-balance the impact of inflation, which was particularly pronounced in countries such as Türkiye, Egypt, Nigeria, Sudan, and Zimbabwe.

In the voice segment, spending on fixed voice services declined in favour of mobile voice and data services due to the increasing popularity of over-the-top (OTT) calling and messaging apps. This trend is more prevalent in Africa where mobile phones often serve as the primary or sole screen-based device for accessing entertainment, banking, commerce, and information via the internet.

IDC’s latest forecast for the MEA telecom services market presents a less optimistic outlook compared to the forecast published in November 2024, projecting a 1.2 percentage point slower growth rate for 2025. This is partly attributed to weakening inflation in some countries as well as revised outlooks by some of the telecom operators that are tracked.

“Telecom operators’ priorities are gradually shifting as they are transforming to reinvent themselves as ‘techcos’ with a focus on launching innovative services and solutions, improving process efficiencies, enhancing customer experiences, and overcoming stifling competition,” says Krishna Chinta, IDC’s senior program manager for data and analytics in the Middle East and Africa.

Operators are transforming their IT architectures, virtualizing their networks, modernizing their apps, leveraging cloud-native delivery platforms, investing in edge compute infrastructure, and embedding AI to enhance operational and network efficiency and improve customer experiences. While most countries in the Gulf region and some countries in the wider MEA region have already implemented 5G infrastructure, the rest of the region is expected to start rolling out 5G in the next five years, along with the ongoing investments in fiber-optic networks and low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite services.

A significant factor that could influence the market’s performance is the sensitive geopolitical landscape and its potential impact on trade and oil prices within the MEA region. The trade tariffs announced by the new U.S. administration is another factor to watch out for. According to Mark Walker, IDC’s vice president of worldwide telecoms data and analytics: “Tariffs on telecommunications equipment might lead to increased costs for telecom operators, potentially delaying 5G rollouts and AI projects, while in the longer term, potential downsides may include further economic deterioration and reduced purchasing power due to a new wave of inflation.”

Although the direct impact on the telecom services market is expected to be minimal, there may be an indirect impact arising from the effects on the overall business environment and employment market conditions in the region. IDC

Netflix says it has used visual effects created by generative artificial intelligence (AI) in one of its original TV shows for the first time.

The streaming giant’s co-chief executive Ted Sarandos said AI, which produces videos and images based on prompts, was used to create a scene of a building collapsing in the Argentine science fiction show, The Eternauts.

He said the technology allowed the production team to complete sequences faster and at a lower cost.

The use of generative AI is controversial in the entertainment industry over concerns it creates content using others’ work without their consent and fears that it will replace the work of humans.

Mr Sarandos made his comments as Netflix announced a 16% rise in revenue to $11bn (£8.25bn) for the three months to the end of June compared to the same period last year. Profits rose from $2.1bn to $3.1bn.

The streaming firm said the better-than-expected performance was boosted by the success of the third and final series of South Korean thriller Squid Game, which has so far attracted 122 million views.

Asked about Netflix’s use of AI, Mr Sarandos said the technology has allowed productions with smaller budgets to use advanced visual effects.

The generative AI used in The Eternauts helped its production team to complete a sequence showing the collapse of a building in Buenos Aires 10 times faster than if they had used traditional special effects tools, he said.

“The cost of it would just wouldn’t have been feasible for a show in that budget.

“That sequence actually is the very first [generative] AI final footage to appear on screen in a Netflix original series or film. So the creators were thrilled with the result,” said Mr Sarandos.

AI was among the key concerns raised during a Hollywood strike in 2023.

During the three-month walkout, the Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists union called for tighter regulation of the use of AI.

Some in the industry have criticised the use of AI in film, calling it degrading to the craft.

In 2024, film mogul Tyler Perry halted plans for a $800m expansion of his studio in Atlanta over fears that the rapid advancement in AI-generated videos would affect jobs.

AI tools like OpenAI’s Sora were being announced at the time, causing awe at the quality of footage it could create from simple text prompts, but also concerns about job security.

Davier Yoon, co-founder of Singapore animation studio CraveFX, said Netflix’s adoption of generative AI came as no surprise as more major studios are welcoming the technology.

Generative AI adds to the list of digital tools that visual effect artists can pick to bring ideas to life, he said.

“It feels like a matter of time. AI definitely opens the gate to allow smaller studios to achieve big budget-looking visuals,” said Mr Yoon.

“Ultimately, it is the artist who decides what is in the final image, not AI.” BBC

Britain’s Sky said it would launch the country’s fastest broadband service from a major provider, with a 5 gigabits per second (Gbps) connection thanks to its tie-up with network operator CityFibre and a hub using the latest WiFi 7 technology.

The pay-TV company, owned by Comcast announced last year it would start using CityFibre’s network in addition to BT’s national Openreach network.

The top speed offered by Sky is more than 20 times faster than Britain’s average broadband speed of 223 megabits per second (Mbps), according to data from regulator Ofcom in December.

The service, available from Wednesday in Sky stores, will start at 80 pounds ($109) a month. A 2.5 Gbps speed will be available for 70 pounds.

It will be offered to customer who can access CityFibre’s network, which has a footprint of 4.5 million premises. Reuters

HBO Max is back.

The Hollywood Reporter reported on Tuesday that Warner Bros. Discovery would officially rebrand its Max streaming service to HBO Max on Wednesday, per a source familiar with the matter — and that change over is now live.

The name change, first announced onstage at WBD’s upfront presentation back in May, will see Max rebrand to HBO Max, the name it used from 2020 until 2023. “I know you’re all shocked, but the good news is I have a drawer full of stationery from the last time around,” HBO chief Casey Bloys quipped onstage at the upfront.

The pivot comes after WBD decided to change its streaming strategy and lean into the premium nature of HBO’s offering, pulling back in some areas like unscripted and kids and family programming, rather than compete on scale with the likes of Netflix.

“This evolution has been influenced by changing consumer needs, and the fact that no consumer today is saying they want more content, but most consumers are saying they want better content,” the company said in a statement in connection with the name change. “With other services filling the more basic needs with volume, WBD has clearly distinguished itself through its quality and distinct stories, and no brand has done that better and more consistently over 50-plus years than HBO.”

The HBO Max logo, which includes a simpler black and white color scheme, will replace Max within the existing app for users Wednesday. Unlike the transition from HBO Max to Max, no new downloading of apps or account changes will be required. (The brands are having trouble, however, getting X to change their names back on the platform.)

The name change comes during a somewhat slow month for the service, which debuted the Warner Bros. film Sinners earlier this month. Billy Joel: And So It Goes will debut July 18, and it will have content related to Shark Week later this month. But it also comes ahead of the open for Emmy voting, which begins in a couple of weeks. As usual, the service is expected to have a number of shows securing nominations, like the latest season of The White Lotus.

The change comes as WBD is set to undergo larger changes, with the company to be split in two next year. HBO Max will be part of a new company led by David Zaslav alongside the Warner Bros. film and TV studios, with the linear TV networks spun into a new company to be led by Gunnar Weidenfels.

The company is also taking HBO Max globally, launching the brand in 12 new markets this month.

Alex Sherman first reported the date of the rebranding. The Hollywood Reporter

Shareholders of media and entertainment company Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd have approved the appointments of Divya Karani as an independent director and Saurav Adhikari as a non-executive director on the board of the company.

While Zee said the approvals reflected shareholders’ confidence in the board, proxy advisory firms iAS and SES had recommended against ratifying Adhikari’s and Karani’s appointments.

Zee said its board has been making efforts to enhance its guidance to the management and strengthen the governance framework with policies. “As part of this approach, the composition of the board is also being enhanced by enlisting experienced members from diverse sectors,” it added.

Karani comes with over three decades of experience spearheading advertising and media agencies across India, South Asia, the UK and Asia Pacific. Previously, she served as the CEO of Dentsu Media, South Asia, leading the agency for over 12 years. She currently serves on the Board of Kulfi Collective, a media network that builds brands and studios that function at the intersection of content, commerce and culture, as its chairperson and executive director.

Adhikari also comes with over three decades of domain expertise in global businesses and markets across technology, FMCG and consumer durables sectors as an operations, general management and investment specialist. His prior experience includes senior global leadership and executive roles across HCL, Unilever and PepsiCo, amongst others. He is currently the founder and senior partner at Indus Tech Edge Fund I, a growth fund focused on globalizing India’s technology ecosystem.

Zee’s shareholders have been unhappy with the extent of control the promoters have over the company despite their small stake.

Following its failed merger with the Indian entertainment business of Japan’s Sony Group Corp., Zee has set in motion a turnaround plan to cut costs and double down on growth-focused investments.

Zee is developing new business units to expand its audience and augment revenue streams, as per an investor presentation published this month. LiveMint

Regulators have levied a 766 million naira fine (about $500,000) on the Nigerian subsidiary of Africa’s biggest subscription television operator for a “patently intrusive” privacy breach.

The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) on Sunday accused MultiChoice Nigeria, the Nigerian outpost of South African cable TV provider MultiChoice, of violating data protection laws.

Babatunde Bamgboye, who heads the NDPC’s enforcement unit, said the commission began its investigation of the breach in the second quarter of 2024 after the company was suspected of carrying out an “illegal cross-border transfer of personal data of Nigerians”.

“NDPC found, among others, that MultiChoice violated the data privacy rights of subscribers and their friends who are not necessarily subscribers,” Bamgboye said in a statement.

“The Commission also found that MultiChoice carries out illegal cross-border transfer of personal data relating to data subjects in Nigeria.”

MultiChoice did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for comment.

This is not the first time Nigeria has clamped down on the company.

Nigeria’s Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) froze the company’s account in 2022 and asked it to pay a 1.8 trillion naira ($1.27 billion) tax claim and a $342 million claim for value-added taxes.

MultiChoice began operating in Nigeria in 1993 and has more than 2,000 employees in the country.

It has lost about 1.4 million Nigerian subscribers in the last two years as the west African country contends with its worst economic crisis in decades. AFP

The Cloud Computing Market is expected to significantly increase from USD 1,294.9 billion in 2025 to USD 2,281.1 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 12.0% during the forecast period, according to Markets and Markets.

Cloud computing has revolutionized how data is stored, processed, and accessed. It allows businesses to scale operations without heavy upfront investments. With growing reliance on remote work and digital tools, cloud platforms offer the flexibility and speed organizations need. Security, automation, and AI integration are also gaining importance in modern cloud strategies.

The compute subsegment will register the largest market share during the forecast period
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) compute is undergoing rapid advancements driven by the surge in artificial intelligence and high-performance workloads. Cloud providers such as AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure are integrating cutting-edge technologies such as AI-optimized processors (e.g., AWS Trainium, Google TPU v5p) and high-speed networking to support increasingly complex applications. These innovations enable organizations to handle massive datasets, accelerate model training, and deploy real-time services with greater efficiency. A notable example is Google Cloud’s partnership with CoreWeave to supply high-performance GPU computing infrastructure for OpenAI, helping support the scaling needs of models like ChatGPT. This shift highlights the growing importance of specialized compute in IaaS to power next-generation digital services.

The supply chain management subsegment is poised for the highest growth rate during the forecast period
Supply chain management in Software as a Service (SaaS) now incorporates cutting-edge technologies such as AI-powered demand forecasting, IoT-enabled tracking, and blockchain-backed transparency within cloud platforms. AI models detect demand fluctuations and optimize inventory, while IoT sensors provide real-time visibility into shipments, preventing spoilage and delays. Blockchain ensures tamper-proof logging and smart contracts for smoother supplier interactions. For example, Trimble’s Supplier Xchange platform connects over 10,000 digital partners and handles 130,000 monthly quote requests totaling USD 18?billion, automating pricing-to-order workflows. By combining these emerging technologies, SaaS SCM solutions help businesses reduce errors, enhance collaboration, and boost responsiveness to market changes, driving inventory accuracy, cost reductions, and operational agility across complex supply chains.

The US will account for the largest market during the forecast period
The US accounts for the largest market in cloud computing, driven by its advanced digital infrastructure, early technology adoption, and strong presence of leading cloud service providers such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud. US enterprises across sectors, ranging from finance and healthcare to retail and manufacturing, are heavily investing in cloud solutions to enhance agility, reduce operational costs, and accelerate innovation. The widespread use of AI, data analytics, and hybrid cloud models further amplifies demand. Additionally, supportive regulatory frameworks and high cloud readiness position the US as the dominant force in the global cloud computing landscape. Markets and Markets

France’s state-owned rail company SNCF will launch a tender soon to add satellite internet to its trains, becoming the latest European rail operator to explore space-based systems for onboard connectivity.

SNCF said it was pursuing an “innovative approach to strengthen connectivity and resilience” by combining terrestrial networks with low Earth-orbit satellite solutions.

The company said the strategy aims to ensure service continuity across its entire network, including isolated sites, and guarantee better internet access for train passengers.

“The satellite plus 4G/5G combination would eliminate dead zones and offer stable, fast service adapted to new uses such as streaming or video conferencing,” SNCF said.

Elon Musk’s Starlink and France’s Eutelsat are among the companies being considered, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.

SNCF would not discuss with Reuters whether it was in talks with specific providers.

A Eutelsat spokesperson confirmed the company’s interest in the deal as it is already in talks with SNCF about setting up a pilot project as they have already done in Britain and Kazakhstan.

“As one of only two LEO (low Earth orbit) operators currently in service, and the only French player, we intend to bid for the contract with our French partners such as Orange business services,” the spokesperson said.

Starlink, which initially focused on consumer services, has expanded into enterprise markets, particularly in transportation and maritime sectors.

Eutelsat, propped up by the French government in its push for LEO services, provides internet access through its OneWeb network of more than 600 LEO satellites.

The move follows similar initiatives across Europe.

Italy’s state railway Ferrovie dello Stato ran a two-week trial in June with two providers, including Starlink, Infrastructure Minister Matteo Salvini said in May.

Most European trains rely on cellular networks for internet access.

However, connection quality varies with mobile network coverage, often dropping in rural areas or tunnels.

The high speeds of tains also create technical challenges as systems must constantly switch between mobile towers, causing intermittent service.

Satellites, on the other hand, offer consistent coverage everywhere, including remote areas where cellular towers are sparse or nonexistent. Reuters

Majority of Indian media and entertainment companies have got a hang of how over the top (OTT) model works and they have been taking steps to cut extra flabs to push their streaming businesses towards profitability from the earlier cash-burn mode.

Major players which have pan-India audiences, like Zee Entertainment Enterprises’ (ZEEL) ZEE5 and Ekta Kapoor-backed Balaji Telefilms’ ALTT, have cut operational costs over the years and have also gone through the process of rebranding their over-the-top (OTT) segments.

While the OTT industry as a whole has been focused on cutting costs, media analysts and executives said that this trend has been more prominent towards the OTT platforms started by Indian companies, as they cannot afford to spend as much as their established global counterparts like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.

The only exception in this case is Reliance Industries-backed JioHotstar.

“OTT platforms have been present in India for the last 10 to 15 years… Even the most lenient investors would like to see some return right now,” said a media analyst, on the condition of anonymity.

In the financial year 2025 (FY25), ZEE5 had an Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) loss of ₹550 crore compared with ₹1,110 crore in FY24. One of the major ways through which the company achieved this goal was through cost-cutting.

In one of its investor presentations, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) has said that it aims to achieve breakeven in ZEE5 from Ebitda losses of ₹548 crore (Ebitda loss excluding the costs incurred by the business on ZEEL network) in FY25 and is positioned to become a leading and profitable OTT player, after having completed its recently announced investment cycle.

On the other hand, ALTT is smaller than what it was earlier, which was a conscious decision made by the company, said Sanjay Dwivedi, group chief executive officer and chief financial officer, Balaji Telefilms.

This was because the company was burning ₹145 crore of cash almost every year to run this segment, which was not healthy.

“As a result, we cut down on cost and reworked our strategy. We want to be Thumbs Up to Coke… Netflix and Prime Video will exist and we will exist in a smaller way, as we don’t want to burn cash,” he added.

Vivek Menon, managing partner, NV Capital, a media and entertainment fund company, said that this trend, to a certain extent, is more prominent among those streaming platforms that target pan-India audiences, unlike regional OTT platforms. “Especially if the platforms had been buying content from Bollywood, Tamil and Telugu languages, as the content costs from these markets are always on the higher side,” Menon said.

Menon said that OTT as a phenomenon started picking up only post-Covid. Hence, to a certain extent, it is still currently in cash burn mode to enhance its subscriber base and is a long, patient model.

Ashish Pherwani, leader, media and entertainment sector, EY India, believes that on one side, the video OTT sector is still in its growth phase, while on the other, it needs to manage increasing content costs, customer acquisition costs and churn.

In this environment, profitability takes a hit, and players who can remain invested in the segment will survive.

Shemaroo Entertainment’s ShemarooMe, which is majorly focused on Gujarati-language content, is “on the road to profitability and viability,” according to Saurabh Srivastava, COO, digital business, Shemaroo Entertainment.

Srivastava said that they had seen a very high double-digit growth in revenue in the first quarter of FY26, and the company will continue to invest in the streaming segment. He said that the industry is learning how to rationalise the cost of running the streaming business in the country and also push for higher ROIs (return on investments).

Additionally, the subscriber base of the company has also risen by a very high double-digit number in Q1FY26 on a year-on-year (Y-o-Y) basis.

Meanwhile, HoiChoi, a subscription-based video-on-demand (SVOD) streaming platform that focuses on Bengali-language content, has achieved its cash breakeven from FY24.

The platform currently has close to 200 original web series. “As a production house creating Bengali films and TV for 30 years, transitioning to web content was a natural evolution,” said Vishnu Mohta, co-founder, Hoichoi.

Collectively, the media executives and analysts highlighted that the industry is growing, with every platform having its own room for growth, as there are many sub-segments or niches available to all the platforms to capitalise on.

“Moving forward, it looks like the majority of the networks have got a hang on how the OTT model works and how one can try to monetise the platform through subscription and advertising. The fact that ZEE5 is completely rebranding itself shows that the investment in the sector will continue to grow,” Menon said. Business Standard