iWorld
Irish TV selects Tata Communications as global technology partner & OTT service provider
NEW DELHI: Ireland’s first ever International TV channel Irish TV has tied up with Tata Communications to bring the network’s content directly to North American viewers for the first time.
Using Tata Communications’ Media Ecosystem platform, Irish TV will provide a rich content experience and on-the-go access to 40 million Irish residents in the U.S. with international expansion plans to other regions in the near future, according to an announcement made today in Las Vegas.
This comes immediately after Tata Communications signed an agreement with Asian Television Network Canada to provide OTT services.
Irish TV founder and CEO Pierce O’Reilly said: “We needed a global network that was flexible, reliable and would deliver a seamless, high-quality experience to our audiences. We’re excited to partner with Tata Communications to launch this new distribution capability and open up greater possibilities to the services we can provide in the future.”
He added: “It was important for us to have a connectivity partner that would not only help us launch our television offering in North America but also around the world.”
Irish TV will leverage Tata Communications’ end-to-end managed over the-top (OTT), playout services and connectivity to deliver content in an intuitive app format. This will make the network’s unique mix of local and Irish productions available to North American viewers across multiple formats such as iOS devices, Android, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Google Chromecast, Apple TV and smart TV’s. Viewers will be able to access exclusive local content from every county in Ireland and Irish communities across the UK and the United States.
The Tata Communications Media Ecosystem combines traditional video contribution services with IP-based connectivity to create a flexible and innovative global media platform. The ecosystem enables seamless global transport and management of content as a cloud-based managed service and supports global media distribution requirements, OTT and mobility applications.
“By harnessing the power of our Media Ecosystem, Irish TV will be ideally positioned to reach the vibrant market of Irish nationals and Irish Americans living in the US,” said Tata Communications CEO for Growth Ventures and Service Provider Group Rangu Salgame. “Our unparalleled OTT platform and video distribution capabilities, underpinned by our global fibre network, enable Irish TV to bring its new audiences the best viewing experiences, anytime, anywhere, on the device of their choice.”
Irish TV has a plethora of content revolving around Irish culture, creating national and local content in all 32 counties in Ireland, and in Irish communities abroad in London and Manchester with rapid expansion across the United States in New York, New Jersey, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, Washington DC, Austin and Los Angeles, among others.
iWorld
Meta plans 8,000 layoffs in new AI-led restructuring wave
First phase from May 20 may cut 10 per cent workforce amid AI pivot.
MUMBAI: At Meta, the future may be artificial but the cuts are very real. The social media giant is reportedly preparing a fresh round of layoffs, with an initial wave expected to impact around 8,000 employees as it doubles down on its artificial intelligence ambitions. According to a Reuters report, the first phase of job cuts is slated to begin on May 20, targeting roughly 10 per cent of Meta’s global workforce. With nearly 79,000 employees on its rolls as of December 31, the move marks one of the company’s most significant workforce reductions in recent years.
And this may only be the beginning. Sources indicate that additional layoffs are being planned for the second half of the year, although the scale and timing remain fluid, likely to be shaped by how Meta’s AI capabilities evolve in the coming months. Earlier reports had suggested that total cuts in 2026 could reach 20 per cent or more of its workforce.
The restructuring comes as chief executive Mark Zuckerberg continues to steer the company towards an AI-first operating model, committing hundreds of billions of dollars to the transition. Internally, this shift is already visible: teams within Reality Labs have been reorganised, engineers have been moved into a newly formed Applied AI unit, and a Meta Small Business division has been created to align with broader structural changes.
The trend is hardly isolated. Across the tech sector, companies are trimming headcount while investing aggressively in automation. Amazon, for instance, has reportedly cut around 30,000 corporate roles nearly 10 per cent of its white-collar workforce citing efficiency gains driven by AI. Data from Layoffs.fyi shows over 73,000 tech employees have already lost jobs this year, compared with 153,000 in all of 2024.
For Meta, the move echoes its earlier “year of efficiency” in 2022–23, when about 21,000 roles were eliminated amid slowing growth and market pressures. This time, however, the backdrop is different. The company is financially stronger, generating over $200 billion in revenue and $60 billion in profit last year, with shares up 3.68 per cent year-to-date though still below last summer’s peak.
That contrast underlines the shift underway. These layoffs are less about survival and more about reinvention. As Meta restructures itself around AI from autonomous coding agents to advanced machine learning systems, the question is no longer whether the company will change, but how many roles will be left unchanged when it does.
