iWorld
Eros acquires UK based PingTune to strengthen music offering on OTT
MUMBAI: Eros International has acquired the UK based music messaging company PingTune, which allows people to discover, share and listen to music through their app on iOS & Android.
The PingTune acquisition provides Eros’ digital platform ErosNow with a first mover advantage in building a differentiated, one-of-a-kind music experience in India.
The PingTune platform allows a deeper social connection between music, fans, and artists. It allows fans to discover, share and listen to music through their app. In addition, PingTune enables artists to create and own official profiles so that they can interact and deliver content directly to fans.
“Music plays an incredibly important role in Bollywood films. We believe our acquisition of PingTune extends our already robust music offering, and is an excellent addition to the ErosNow platform, adding features and functionality that provide our users with a highly differentiated music experience. PingTune adds a deeper level of social connectivity by eliminating the boundary between artists and fans, and allowing users to connect with artists in a more meaningful and enjoyable way,” said Eros Digital CEO Rishika Lulla Singh.
“Eros has always been at the forefront of Indian media and entertainment, adapting new technology to enable fans to experience content in new ways. Their online platform, ErosNow, is a great example of this. We are very excited to partner with Eros in this age of bite-sized content and mobile connectivity, where a content sharing experience for consumers is extremely valuable. Eros’ massive audience and existing relationships with artists will allow PingTune to achieve tremendous scale and visibility worldwide,” added PingTune founder and CEO Henry David Firth.
iWorld
Snapchat parent Snap cuts 16 per cent of workforce in AI-driven restructuring
The Snapchat parent is axing around 1,000 jobs and closing 300 open roles to save $500m, as artificial intelligence makes smaller teams the new normal
CALIFORNIA: Snap is snapping. The Snapchat parent has confirmed plans to cut around 1,000 employees, roughly 16 per cent of its full-time workforce, as it bets that artificial intelligence can do what headcount once required. Shares jumped more than 10 per cent in premarket trading on the news, a brisk vote of confidence from a market that has watched the stock shed about 31 per cent this year.
The restructuring, which also closes more than 300 open roles, follows pressure from activist investor Irenic Capital Management, which holds an economic interest of about 2.5 per cent in the company and has been loudly pushing Snap to tighten its portfolio and lift performance. The firm got what it asked for, and then some.
Chief executive Evan Spiegel told employees the cuts would reduce annualised expenses by more than $500m by the second half of the year. The company expects to incur charges of between $95m and $130m related to the layoffs, mostly severance, with the bulk landing in the second quarter. Staff in Snap’s North America team were asked to work from home on the day of the announcement.
The financial backdrop is not without bright spots. Snap expects first-quarter revenue to rise around 12 per cent to approximately $1.53 billion, broadly in line with analyst estimates. Adjusted core profit for the January to March quarter is forecast at about $233m, comfortably ahead of Wall Street’s expectation of $186.8m.
The harder question surrounds Specs, Snap’s augmented reality smart glasses subsidiary, which Irenic has urged the company to spin off or shut down entirely. The unit has absorbed more than $3.5 billion in investment and burns through approximately $500m in cash annually. Snap is pressing ahead regardless, with a consumer product expected later this year, even as Meta leads the market in the segment.
Spiegel is betting that leaner teams, smarter machines and a consumer AR play can restore Snap’s credibility with investors who have run out of patience. The redundancy notices have gone out. The harder restructuring, the one that requires a hit product rather than a headcount reduction, is still very much pending.
