iWorld
Viu enters Middle East, to provide buffer-free content
MUMBAI: Video-on-demand (VOD) service provider Vuclip has launched Viu, a direct to consumer VOD service, in the Middle East. The platform is already available in Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Hong Kong and Singapore.
In the Middle East, content will be available without charge, while premium content can be viewed without advertisements, after paying a monthly subscription fee. Users across the region now have access to tens of thousands of hours of local, regional and international premium entertainment, built on Vuclip’s patented Dynamic Adaptive Transcoding technology to offer viewers a buffer free viewing experience.
The platform offers regional, international and local entertainment on-demand content, including Egyptian, Syrian, Khaleeji and Tunisian TV dramas.
Users can access classic movies and recent blockbusters, as well as curated music videos for over 6,000 songs from artists such as Nicole Saba, Amr Diab, Hassan El Shafei, Nancy Ajram, Ramy Sabrya and Maya Diab. Bollywood content can also be streamed, with films, popular TV shows and music videos featuring stars such as Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif and Deepika Padukone.
The company recently sealed a deal with Indian content house Shemaroo to add more content to the Viu platform.
Vuclip regional director for Middle East Sherif Dahan voiced that the expansion will be exciting as they plan to bring new ideas to life and offer viewers a whole new experience in entertainment.
iWorld
Tips Music CEO Hari Nair to step down
Girish Taurani and Sushant Dalmia to jointly steer the company as the hunt for a new chief begins
MUMBAI: A leadership shuffle is under way at Tips Music. Hari Nair, the company’s chief executive, will step down on April 30 as the music label begins the search for a successor.
The company said Girish Taurani, executive director, and Sushant Dalmia, chief financial officer, will jointly oversee operations during the transition while the board identifies a permanent replacement.
Nair joined Tips Music in 2023 and set about reshaping the veteran music label into a more digital, data-led enterprise. During his tenure, the company secured licensing and partnership deals with global platforms including Sony Music Publishing and TikTok, while renewing agreements with Warner Music Group.
Drawing on earlier experience in technology and entertainment, including a stint at ByteDance, Nair pushed the organisation towards a performance-driven culture. He built a brand partnerships division and introduced proprietary software systems aimed at strengthening digital distribution and data capabilities.
Kumar Taurani, chairman and managing director, credited Nair with embedding a data-led culture within the company and driving revenue growth in line with shareholder commitments.
In his resignation note, Nair said that after helping transition the label into a modern, digitally focused and process-driven organisation, the time had come to pursue his next leadership challenge.
The leadership change comes as the broader Tips Films group shows signs of financial stabilisation. In the third quarter of FY26 the company reported a net loss of Rs 2.86 crore, narrowing sharply from Rs 14.2 crore in the previous quarter. For the nine months ended December, losses stood at Rs 12.37 crore.
Yet revenue told a more volatile story. Income from operations slid to Rs 4 crore in Q3 FY26 from Rs 56 crore in the preceding quarter, taking total operating income to Rs 4.56 crore.
For a company built on a catalogue of more than 34,000 tracks and decades of Bollywood hits, the next chief will inherit both a digital engine and a volatile music market. The playlist may be familiar, but the next act at Tips Music is only just beginning.
