iWorld
Mobavenue builds ‘OTT Communities’ for leading OTT players to boost subscription
Mumbai: The popularity of Netflix’s documentary “The Elephant Whisperers” has been evident both before and after its Oscar win, highlighting the ability of OTT platforms to build communities of viewers. This also emphasizes the significance of advertising strategies, especially programmatic advertising, in driving subscriptions.
The OTT industry is still in its customer acquisition and retention stage. Using programmatic user acquisition and unique targeting methods, Mobavenue, aN adtech and martech company, has helped OTT brands drive paid subscriptions, views, and retention.
All major OTT players are investing in original content and, in some cases, live sports streaming. Streaming services allow users to pay for only the content they wish to watch without committing to expensive long-term contracts. As a result, users can access quality sports streaming at competitive prices.
“We have seen streaming companies buying exclusive rights with popular sports such as cricket and football. The rise of these digital streaming giants breaking into the market will bring significant changes in audience behaviour. With more people now able to access quality streaming at an affordable price, there is no doubt that streaming giants will go big in 2023,” said Mobavenue Media Private Ltd co-founder and chief operating officer Tejas Rathod.
The OTT market still faces unique challenges, which require unique solutions too. In general, not everyone would continue paying for several memberships for an extended period. Although OTT brands are coming up with more affordable subscription plans, password sharing is still a prevalent issue, especially among GenZ and Millennials.
“GenZ and Millennials are more likely to sign up when something interests them to watch and cancel the subscription once they no longer need to watch. With subscriber growth stalling, streaming businesses will invest more in subscriber acquisition and retention. Our expertise leverages OTT platforms with a full-funnel approach in acquisition, retargeting, monetization, and promotion,” added Rathod.
The OTT segment is likely to grow at a remarkable CAGR of 14.1 per cent to reach Rs 21,032 crore in 2026. Subscription services, which accounted for 90.5 per cent of revenue in 2021, are projected to account for 95 per cent of revenue by 2026, as per a report by global consultancy firm PwC.
iWorld
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.
