iWorld
Verizon Digital Media partners with Airtel for POPs
MUMBAI: Verizon Digital Media Services, the next-generation digital media platform, and Bharti Airtel Limited (“Airtel”), India’s largest telecommunications services provider, have partnered to launch new points of presence (PoPs) in four cities in India: Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and New Delhi.
The four PoP installations mark Verizon Digital Media Services’ significant investment into expanding throughout the country, leveraging Airtel’s digital infrastructure as a gateway to India. This partnership will ensure that content on the Verizon Digital Media Services platform can be accessed by digital media consumers in a fast, seamless and reliable way and will improve the experience for users in India.
“We are expanding our content delivery network in strategic markets that our customers care about, and we have found a long-term partner in Airtel Business,” said Verizon Digital Media Services Chief Technology Officer Rob Peters. “The launch of these strategic PoPs marks the beginning of a strong partnership between Verizon and Airtel Business and further cements our commitment to providing consumers in India, one of the fastest-growing markets for digital media consumption, with exceptional services and quality.”
In addition to Airtel’s world-class data center services and unparalleled network across the country, this move enables Verizon Digital Media Services to provide superior digital media experiences to millions of internet users in India.
The newly installed PoPs have already yielded exceptional outcomes. Using third-party Cedexis measurement tools, Verizon Digital Media Services has observed significant network improvements when comparing its network performance in India before and after the PoP installations. The amount of time required on Verizon Digital Media Services’ servers to receive users’ requests, respond and deliver results has significantly decreased.
“India is fast emerging as a large regional IP Hub and we are excited to enable Verizon Digital Media Services to provide best-in-class digital services in India. This collaboration ensures superior user experiences and seamlessly handles traffic spikes as connected devices, subscribers and content size continue to grow. We are delighted by the positive results seen in a very short time and we are confident that in the long term, Indian mobile Internet users are going to immensely benefit from this partnership,” said Bharti Airtel director & CEO-global voice & data business Ajay Chitkara.
Airtel has a presence that spans 18 countries, including India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and 15 countries in Africa. It offers both B2C and B2B telecom services, including wireless and fixed line technology, national and international long-distance connectivity, Digital TV and IPTV services, and complete integrated telecom solutions to enterprise customers. Airtel’s global network runs across 225,000 Rkms, covering 50 countries and five continents.
Verizon Digital Media Services has points of presence in North America, South America, Europe, Australia and Asia. More than 3,000 interconnections help to ensure that content is delivered reliably and securely — anytime, anywhere, on any device.
The company’s exclusive end-to-end platform also provides a variety of solutions, including the Video Lifecycle Solution, the Web Acceleration Solution and the Commerce Acceleration Solution, for broadcast, enterprise and commerce businesses, respectively.
Some of the clients which are using Verizon Digital Media’s services include: ABC, SoundCloud, Hearst Television, tumblr, twitter, Pintrest,among many others.
iWorld
Why Peaky Blinders is one of television’s biggest hits that still deserves more attention
Six seasons, multiple awards and the release of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man bring the Shelby saga back into the spotlight
In the crowded universe of streaming content, only a handful of shows manage to leave a lasting cultural footprint. Peaky Blinders is overwhelmingly considered one of the biggest global hits of the past decade. Yet many viewers still haven’t fully explored the dark, gripping world of the Shelby family.
Originally produced for the UK’s BBC and later finding a massive global audience through Netflix, the series quietly grew from a British period drama into a worldwide streaming phenomenon.
Created by Steven Knight, the show follows the rise of the Shelby crime family in post-First World War Birmingham. What begins as a gritty street-gang story gradually expands into a sweeping narrative about ambition, politics, power and survival.
At the centre of the saga is Thomas Shelby, portrayed with extraordinary depth by Cillian Murphy. The casting of Murphy is widely regarded as perfect for the role. With piercing eyes, restrained dialogue and an almost hypnotic screen presence, he transforms Shelby into one of the most unforgettable characters in modern screen storytelling.
Murphy’s brilliance lies in his restraint. He rarely shouts or performs theatrically. Instead, a quiet stare, a calculated pause or a subtle shift in expression conveys the emotional storms within the character. Beneath the ruthless gang leader is a war veteran carrying trauma, guilt and loneliness. Murphy captures this complexity with remarkable precision, making Thomas Shelby both terrifying and deeply human.
Beyond its central performance, Peaky Blinders stands out for its unfiltered portrayal of reality. The show does not romanticise crime. Instead, it exposes the harsh social conditions of early 20th-century Britain, from poverty and class struggle to political extremism and the psychological scars left by war.
The series also presents powerful female characters who hold their own within the Shelby empire. Polly Gray, played by Helen McCrory, is the strategic backbone of the family and one of the most formidable figures in the story. Women in the series shape decisions, influence power structures and challenge the rigid social norms of the time.
Across six seasons, the narrative grows dramatically in scale. What begins in the smoky streets of Birmingham evolves into a story involving political conspiracies, fascism and international criminal networks.
The series has also earned significant critical acclaim. It won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series in 2018 and multiple National Television Awards for Best Drama, cementing its reputation as one of Britain’s most celebrated modern shows.
Another defining feature of the series is its iconic music. The show’s opening theme, Red Right Hand by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, became instantly recognisable and widely associated with the Shelby universe. Combined with a powerful soundtrack featuring artists such as Arctic Monkeys and Radiohead, the music helped shape the show’s dark, stylish identity and became hugely popular among fans.
And the Shelby story is not over yet.
In fact, its legacy is unfolding right now. The long-awaited feature-length continuation, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, was released on March 6, 2026, bringing the Shelby universe from streaming screens to cinemas and giving fans a new chapter in the saga.
For viewers who have not yet stepped into this world, the timing could not be better.
Six gripping seasons are ready to binge on Netflix. A new film has just arrived in theatres. And at the heart of it all stands one of the most magnetic performances in modern drama by Cillian Murphy.
So if Peaky Blinders has been sitting on your watchlist for years, this weekend is your moment.
So, by order of the Peaky fookin’ Blinders, consider this your cue to finally step into the ruthless world of Thomas Shelby. Pour yourself a drink, clear your schedule and press the play button. Because when the Peaky Blinders give an order, you listen.
