iWorld
New video platform to compete with YouTube, Vimeo
NEW DELHI: A new video platform for lifestyle content Wonder PL hopes to compete with YouTube and Vimeo and capitalise on the soaring popularity of online video streaming.
Backed by Universal Music Group, Qualcomm Ventures, former Apple executive Pascal Cagni and a personal investment by Vice Media president Andrew Creighton, Wonder PL which was launched on 13 March features topics from wellness to food to entertainment targeting women.
Wonder PL is differentiating itself from YouTube by targeting professional content makers to use its platform for an annual fee. Whereas, YouTube is free to anyone who wants to upload a video.
“We want to be the Whole Foods of video,” said Wonder PL founder and CEO Sofia Fenichell. “YouTube is Wal-Mart.”
Wonder PL is going after brands and content creators such as the National Film Board of China and chef Tom Aikens. Wonder charges an annual fee of $300 for its members to use the platform to upload videos. “We know everyone is going to produce more videos,” Fenichell said.
While more people are uploading and consuming video, it is a crowded market. Google’s YouTube, which is ad-supported, has more than a billion unique users per month who watch more than six billion hours of video.
IAC/Interactive’s Vimeo provides a platform for professional users too. Anyone can post videos to the Vimeo platform for free but it charges up to $199 for more comprehensive features like additional storage, support and the ability to sell video on demand. Vimeo takes a 10 per cent cut on all videos using this additional feature. The platform has over 22 million registered members and reaches a global monthly audience of about 150 million.
Fenichell said Wonder will depend on subscription revenue for now but could eventually start providing opportunities for sponsored content. People view videos on Wonder in an ad-free environment.
“The industry currently trades a free or nominal membership fee in exchange for taking very high platform commissions,” she added. “We believe this is an unsustainable model for creators who need to generate value from their work.”
iWorld
Netflix cuts jobs in product division amid restructuring
Layoffs hit creative studio unit as leadership and strategy shifts unfold.
MUMBAI: The streaming wars may be fought on screen, but the latest plot twist is unfolding behind the scenes. Netflix has reportedly begun laying off several dozen employees from its product division as part of an internal reorganisation, according to a report by Variety. The cuts are believed to have primarily affected the company’s creative studio unit, which works on marketing assets such as in app trailers, promotional visuals and live experience content for the streaming platform.
The company has not disclosed the exact number of employees impacted.
According to the report, the layoffs were not tied to employee performance. Instead, the restructuring eliminated certain roles while other employees were reassigned to different teams within the organisation.
The roles affected are understood to include designers, producers and creative specialists responsible for marketing and brand experience initiatives.
The job cuts come as Netflix adjusts its leadership structure and reshapes its product and creative teams. Last month, Elizabeth Stone was promoted from chief technology officer to chief product and technology officer, giving her oversight of product, engineering and data operations across the company.
Earlier, in December 2025, Netflix also appointed Martin Rose as head of creative for global brand and partnerships, a move seen as part of a broader restructuring of the company’s brand and product functions.
Despite the layoffs, Netflix remains one of the largest employers in the streaming sector. The company is estimated to employ around 16,000 people globally, with roughly 70 percent of its workforce based in the United States and Canada. In 2023, the company reported approximately 13,000 employees, indicating that its headcount had grown significantly before the latest restructuring.
The workforce changes arrive at a time when Netflix is navigating a shifting financial and strategic landscape in the global entertainment industry.
The streaming giant recently secured $2.8 billion in additional cash after receiving a breakup fee from Paramount Skydance following its withdrawal from a deal involving Warner Bros. Discovery.
Speaking to Bloomberg, Netflix co chief executive Ted Sarandos explained that the company had evaluated multiple scenarios during the negotiations but chose not to match the competing offer once it learned that a higher bid had been submitted.
Netflix had capped its offer at $27.75 per share and ultimately stepped back rather than pursue Paramount’s $111 billion acquisition deal, which included a personal guarantee.
Sarandos also cautioned that the financing structure behind the Paramount Skydance transaction could have ripple effects across the entertainment industry.
According to him, the debt heavy deal could trigger significant cost cutting, with David Ellison, chief executive of Paramount Skydance, expected to eliminate about $16 billion in costs and potentially cut thousands of jobs as part of the integration process.
For Netflix, the current restructuring appears to be part of a broader attempt to streamline operations while continuing to invest in product, technology and global content even as the streaming industry enters a new phase of consolidation and financial discipline.
