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Disney and StarHub to launch mobile video streaming
MUMBAI: Disney fans in Singapore can now watch all their favourite Disney programmes, including exclusive branded content, whenever and wherever they want.
The Walt Disney Company Southeast Asia together with StarHub on 7 December will launch a new mobile video streaming service via a suite of three new innovative entertainment apps – WATCH Disney Channel, WATCH Disney XD, and WATCH Disney Junior.
The WATCH Disney apps will provide authenticated StarHub TV customers with access to Disney’s existing live, television network streams, exclusive and first-hand content, as well as an extensive offering of premiere ‘on demand’ episodes.
Disney fans can also view all popular television series such as Phineas and Ferb, Disney Junior’s Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Disney XD’s Avengers Assemble on the go and will also be able to access new episodes of selected shows on the WATCH apps first before it launches on the TV channel.
At the launch, the channel’s original animation Wander over Yonder, created by award-winning animator Craig McCracken, will be available first on the WATCH Disney Channel app before its television premiere. New live-action series Mighty Med, a Disney XD original series will be available exclusively on the WATCH Disney XD app from February 2014.
The free WATCH Disney apps feature a fun and engaging online environment, designed around Disney characters and custom animation on a simple, child-friendly user interface. Apart from streaming of live TV channels and on-demand content, there’s also the episodes catch-up function. The app provides language options to the viewers.
“We’re excited to offer Disney fans of all ages more opportunities to watch, interact, personalise and enjoy our Disney shows when and where they want it,” said TWDC SEA general manager, branded media content Natasha Malhotra in a release.
“The WATCH Disney Channels apps are kid-friendly, easy to use and provide kids and families access to the live streaming channels along with a robust selection of content ‘On Demand’ at home or ‘On-The-Go’ for authenticated StarHub subscribers,” she added.
StarHub TV customers can stream the channel live on the multiscreen service ‘StarHub TV Anywhere’ which includes the WATCH Disney apps on iOS devices such as the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.
“We are excited to be the only pay TV operator in Singapore to bring Disney’s signature content to viewers on multiple screens via the WATCH apps as part of our ‘StarHub TV Anywhere’ service offering. We are constantly working with brands such as Disney to find innovative ways to delight our customers and the WATCH apps exemplify our efforts to provide a ubiquitous viewing experience for them,” said StarHub head of home solutions Lin Shu Fen in the release.
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Meta plans 8,000 layoffs in new AI-led restructuring wave
First phase from May 20 may cut 10 per cent workforce amid AI pivot.
MUMBAI: At Meta, the future may be artificial but the cuts are very real. The social media giant is reportedly preparing a fresh round of layoffs, with an initial wave expected to impact around 8,000 employees as it doubles down on its artificial intelligence ambitions. According to a Reuters report, the first phase of job cuts is slated to begin on May 20, targeting roughly 10 per cent of Meta’s global workforce. With nearly 79,000 employees on its rolls as of December 31, the move marks one of the company’s most significant workforce reductions in recent years.
And this may only be the beginning. Sources indicate that additional layoffs are being planned for the second half of the year, although the scale and timing remain fluid, likely to be shaped by how Meta’s AI capabilities evolve in the coming months. Earlier reports had suggested that total cuts in 2026 could reach 20 per cent or more of its workforce.
The restructuring comes as chief executive Mark Zuckerberg continues to steer the company towards an AI-first operating model, committing hundreds of billions of dollars to the transition. Internally, this shift is already visible: teams within Reality Labs have been reorganised, engineers have been moved into a newly formed Applied AI unit, and a Meta Small Business division has been created to align with broader structural changes.
The trend is hardly isolated. Across the tech sector, companies are trimming headcount while investing aggressively in automation. Amazon, for instance, has reportedly cut around 30,000 corporate roles nearly 10 per cent of its white-collar workforce citing efficiency gains driven by AI. Data from Layoffs.fyi shows over 73,000 tech employees have already lost jobs this year, compared with 153,000 in all of 2024.
For Meta, the move echoes its earlier “year of efficiency” in 2022–23, when about 21,000 roles were eliminated amid slowing growth and market pressures. This time, however, the backdrop is different. The company is financially stronger, generating over $200 billion in revenue and $60 billion in profit last year, with shares up 3.68 per cent year-to-date though still below last summer’s peak.
That contrast underlines the shift underway. These layoffs are less about survival and more about reinvention. As Meta restructures itself around AI from autonomous coding agents to advanced machine learning systems, the question is no longer whether the company will change, but how many roles will be left unchanged when it does.
