iWorld
Disney emerges profit during first financial report in streaming business
Mumbai: Disney’s revenue for the quarter ending March 30 climbed to $22.1 billion compared to $21.8 billion in the corresponding period last year. Earnings per share for the quarter surged to $1.21 from 93 cents, exceeding analysts’ expectations of $1.02 per share on revenue of $20.53 billion.
The company celebrated its first-ever profit in the streaming business, with expectations set for the combined streaming businesses to be profitable by the fiscal fourth quarter, in line with guidance established in 2019.
The number of core Disney+ subscribers reached 117.6 million, while Hulu reported 50.2 million subscribers. However, paid subscribers for Disney+ Hotstar dropped to 36 million by 30 March 2024, from 38.3 million on 30 December 2023, with average monthly revenue per paid subscriber decreasing to $0.70 from $1.28 due to lower advertising revenue.
According to Q2 FY24 report, a 17 per cent decrease in operating loss at Star India was noted due to reduced programming and production costs attributed to the non-renewal of Board of Control for Cricket in India rights. However, this was partially offset by increased costs for Indian Premier League matches due to more matches aired compared to the previous year.
Disney+ Hotstar has been experiencing a decline in subscribers, losing 12.5 million paid subscribers in the third quarter ending on 1 July 2023, and an additional 2.8 million in November 2023.
The sports unit, ESPN, saw a two per cent revenue increase to $4.3 billion, while the experiences division, which includes theme parks and consumer products, reported a 10 per cent increase to $8.4 billion. However, there was a 17 per cent decline in sports revenue from Star Sports, reaching $105 million in Q2FY24 versus $127 million in Q2FY23.
The Walt Disney Company CEO Robert A.Iger expressed satisfaction with the strong performance in Q2, highlighting a 30 per cent increase in adjusted EPS(1) compared to the prior year. He said the positive outcomes of the growth initiatives set in motion the previous year, including highly anticipated theatrical releases, successful television shows, ESPN’s continued success, and strategic investments driving growth in the Experiences business.
iWorld
Telcos push for unified rules as spam shifts to OTT platforms
Over 80 per cent fraud moves online, operators seek common framework.
MUMBAI: The spam may have left your phone network but it hasn’t left you alone. India’s telecom operators are once again dialling up the pressure for a unified regulatory framework, warning that fraud is rapidly migrating to internet-based platforms where oversight remains far looser. According to industry communication, a leading operator has written to multiple arms of the government including the Department of Telecommunications, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Ministry of Finance arguing that tighter controls on traditional telecom networks are inadvertently pushing bad actors towards over-the-top (OTT) communication platforms.
The concern is not new, but the framing has sharpened. What was once an industry grievance is now being positioned as a consumer protection issue. Operators say that tackling spam in silos no longer works, as fraudsters seamlessly shift across platforms, exploiting regulatory gaps. The result: a moving target that traditional safeguards struggle to contain.
Executives point to a clear shift in fraud patterns. OTT platforms are increasingly being used for phishing links, impersonation scams and bulk unsolicited messaging, with industry estimates suggesting that over 80 per cent of spam activity has now migrated online. In this environment, the lines between telecom networks, messaging apps and financial fraud are blurring fast.
At the heart of the industry’s demand is a call for a technology-neutral regulatory framework, one that applies consistently across telecom and internet-based communication services. Operators argue that the absence of uniform safeguards, such as sender verification systems, robust spam filters and clearly defined accountability mechanisms, has created enforcement blind spots that fraudsters are quick to exploit.
The proposal is straightforward but far-reaching. Telcos are pushing for baseline anti-fraud measures across all communication platforms, alongside faster response systems and deeper coordination between ministries. Given the interconnected nature of telecom networks, digital platforms and financial systems, they argue that fragmented oversight only weakens the overall defence.
The broader issue is regulatory arbitrage, the ability of bad actors to hop between platforms based on which is least regulated at any given time. Without harmonised rules, operators say, efforts to curb fraud risk becoming a game of whack-a-mole.
As digital communication continues to expand, the debate is shifting from who regulates what to how consistently it is regulated. For now, telecom operators are making their case clear: in a world where spam travels freely, regulation cannot afford to stay fragmented.
