iWorld
Gameloft partners with ZEE5 to launch online gaming
MUMBAI: Gameloft Distribution Solutions, leader in the mobile entertainment gaming market, has been chosen by ZEE5, to power the games on to its platform as a part of its strategy to bring wholesome entertainment under one roof.
Under the partnership, high-quality snackable hyper-casual online games will be curated to deeply engage audience by adding a dose of thrill and competitiveness for the users.
The new PLAY5 games leverages Gameloft’s twenty years of expertise in developing gaming services for more than 300 carriers in the world. Thanks to Gameloft’s offer, entertainment service providers can launch their fully customizable branded game services with monetization and full transparency on their analytics.
Rajneel Kumar, business head, expansion projects & head of products, ZEE5 India, said: “We want to be the country’s entertainment super-app and our partnership with Gameloft is yet another step in that direction. We are constantly evolving as a platform and now boast multiple offerings for a diverse set of audiences and taste clusters – from bespoke content library across originals, movies, catch-up shows to kids content and music. With PLAY5, it is yet another use case that we have added by staying true to our philosophy of being a super-app. We are committed to making ZEE5 reach out to consumers at every stage of their life and serve uninterrupted entertainment via various offerings anytime, anywhere.”
“We are committed to the true potential of gaming in India and therefore had been continuously working towards offering content in the manner which offers ease of consumption for the masses and our online games enables mass casual users to have a shot of adrenalin to pump up their energy levels. We shall continue to strive towards offering gaming in a manner which suits the larger section as they evolve. We are pretty convinced that with a partnership with Zee5, a leading entertainment player on digital space, we shall have rapid adaptation and transmission of gaming into the world of uninitiated” explained Florent Vallauri, managing director, south east Asia pacific (SEAP), at Gameloft.
“Gameloft’s longstanding expertise in the mobile ecosystem allows us to create top performing platforms and services, adapted to the needs of each of our partners.”
iWorld
WhatsApp may soon let users to pick who sees their status updates
The messaging giant is borrowing a page from Instagram’s playbook as it pushes to give users finer control over their social circles.
CALIFORNIA: WhatsApp is quietly working on a feature that could make its Status function considerably smarter and considerably more private.
According to reports from beta tracking platforms, the app is testing a tool called Status lists, which would allow users to create named groups such as close friends, family and colleagues, and control precisely which group sees each update. It is a meaningful step up from the platform’s current blunt instruments, which offer only three options: share with all contacts, exclude specific people, or manually select individuals each time.
The new feature draws an obvious comparison with Instagram’s Close Friends function, and the resemblance is unlikely to be accidental. Both platforms sit within Meta’s family, and the company has been nudging them toward a common logic of audience segmentation for some time.
The move also fits neatly into WhatsApp’s broader privacy push. The platform has been rolling out enhanced chat protections and is exploring the introduction of usernames, which would allow users to connect without exchanging phone numbers. Status lists extend that philosophy from messaging into broadcasting.
Meanwhile, Status itself has been evolving well beyond its origins as a simple photo-and-text slideshow. The feature now supports music stickers, collages, longer videos and interactive elements, pushing it closer to the social-media-style story format pioneered by Snapchat and refined by Instagram. In that context, finer audience controls are not merely a privacy feature. They are a precondition for people sharing more.
The feature remains in development and has not been confirmed for release. WhatsApp routinely tests tools that are later modified or quietly shelved. But the direction of travel is clear: the app wants Status to be a destination, not an afterthought. Letting users decide exactly who is in the audience is how it gets there.
