iWorld
Broadbus Technologies in expansion mode; appoints India sales head
MUMBAI: Broadbus Technologies, Inc., the US-based next-generation video on-demand (VOD) server technology provider, has opened its European office and the appointment of industry veteran Alkesh Patel as vice president of sales for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and India.
These moves represent a continuation of Broadbus’ global expansion, joining offices in North America and research & development facilities in Beijing. The company develops fully scalable, next-generation video on-demand server systems designed to solve streaming scale, space, power consumption and live ingest issues for communications service providers deploying advanced video services such as VOD, Subscription VOD, and ultimately, full-scale Television On-Demand (TOD).
The company has established regional headquarters in the UK in response to its strong customer success in Europe, where Broadbus deployments pass nearly five million homes. The move comes at a time of rapid growth in video on demand (VOD) and time-shifted viewing — the EMEA region has almost 40 million households with access to on-demand services, and this number will reach to 98 million by 2010 according to Informa Telecoms & Media, states an official release.
“The establishment of a European office and the addition of Alkesh Patel to Broadbus will allow us to continue to capitalize on the growing opportunity for on-demand video services in the region,” Broadbus CEO Vin Bisceglia said. “In addition, it will enable us to build upon our local support and implementation partnerships, ensuring continued world- class service and support for our existing customers.”
Patel joins Broadbus with 19 years of experience in the telecommunications market, and will be responsible for leading regional sales, business development and customer support activities. Prior to joining Broadbus, Patel was vice president of channel sales for EMEA at MetaSolv, where he secured and managed relationships accounting for 40 percent of the OSS company’s revenues in the region, the release adds.
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.
