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Canada’s video providers & Friend MTS partner to tackle sports piracy
Mumbai: Friend MTS, a provider of video content security solutions, reported that several video service providers in Canada have chosen it to prevent piracy using dynamic delivery server blocking (DDSB). These companies have secured a nationwide court order to block servers hosting pirated content, including content from major sports leagues like FIFA, NBA, NHL, and UFC.
The court order allows internet service providers (ISPs) to block access to servers distributing pirated content without needing a new order for each event. This approach saves time and money by reducing court fees and appearances, while protecting valuable sports content rights.
Launched by Friend MTS in 2017, DDSB enables large-scale content blocking while meeting legal standards for court-granted orders. It provides customers with the necessary intelligence and evidence to persuade ISPs to restrict access to illegal servers, reducing the number of illegal streams. This helps drive viewers to legitimate platforms and preserves the value of video content. Friend MTS’ DDSB has a proven track record of blocking illicit access within minutes, particularly for short format content like sports and live events, and is increasingly used to protect linear content.
“This collaboration shows the powerful impact that results from video service providers, ISPs, and video security specialists coming together to fight piracy,” said Friend MTS CEO Shane McCarthy. “Canadian operators are leading the global industry by setting the bar for piracy prevention in new, dynamic ways. We’re thrilled to have helped them not only implement security solutions, but to obtain the blocking order as well. Our unique blend of expertise and blocking technology innovation is aiding their security teams, legal counsels, and business leaders with the right analytics and evidence to effectively stop piracy, without impacting legitimate websites.”
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Inshorts Group chief Deepit Purkayastha joins IAB video council for Southeast Asia and India
The co-founder and chief executive of the short-form content platform has been inducted into the IAB SEA+India Video Council, giving India a stronger voice in shaping digital video frameworks
NOIDA: India has long been the world’s most chaotic, multilingual and mobile-first digital market. Now, one of its most prominent short-video executives is getting a seat at the table where the rules are written.
Deepit Purkayastha, co-founder and chief executive of Inshorts Group, has been selected as a member of the IAB SEA+India Video Council for 2026. Run by the Interactive Advertising Bureau, the council brings together senior leaders from Southeast Asia and India to shape standards, best practices and measurement frameworks for the fast-evolving video and digital advertising ecosystem.
The timing is pointed. According to the IAMAI-Kantar Internet in India Report 2025, over 588 million Indians are now consuming short-video content, with growth increasingly driven by rural and non-metro audiences. India’s active internet user base has crossed 950 million, with 57 per cent of users now coming from rural markets. Yet the frameworks that govern how video consumption is measured and monetised were largely designed for single-language, Western markets and have struggled to keep pace with the scale, diversity and complexity of India’s digital landscape.
Purkayastha is no stranger to these debates. He already serves on the AI Council at Marketing and Media Alliance India and as co-chair of the Digital Entertainment Committee at the Internet and Mobile Association of India. His induction into the IAB SEA+India Video Council extends that influence into the global video standards arena.
Inshorts Group sits squarely at the intersection of these forces. Its flagship product, Inshorts, India’s highest-rated short news app, reaches 12 million active users with 60-word news summaries. Its sister platform, Public App, reaches 80 million monthly active users across more than 700 districts and 12 languages, serving communities that most global platforms barely register.
Purkayastha said the opportunity was about building something more representative. “India today sits at the centre of the global video ecosystem, but the frameworks that define how value is created and measured have not always kept pace with the realities of our market,” he said. “Being part of the IAB SEA+India Video Council is an opportunity to contribute to a more representative and future-ready approach, one that accounts for diversity in language, context, and user intent.”
As a council member, Purkayastha will contribute to shaping regional standards across video advertising, measurement and platform governance, with a focus on frameworks that are native to India’s multilingual, mobile-first ecosystem rather than imported from global benchmarks designed elsewhere.
For years, India has been content to play by rules written for other markets. Purkayastha’s induction is a signal that it is done waiting to be consulted and ready to start writing them.
