iWorld
Smartphones & pay TV growth in China & India to spur A-Pac VOD demand: FMI report
MUMBAI: A-Pac rules and how. The Asia Pacific region is slated to overtake Western Europe as the second largest market for video on demand (VOD) services by 2020. And the growth in the region is going to be driven by the insatiable demand for smart phones in the fast growing economies of China and India. The Asia Pacific VOD market is expected to touch revenues of $80.5 billion, fuelled additionally by the consumer hunger for pay TV services too in the region. From 13 per cent share of the global VOD sales in 2014, it is expected to rise to 22 per cent in the next five years. These are the findings of a US-based Future Market Insights (FMI) report released recently.
Titled Video on Demand (VoD) Market: Global Industry Analysis and Opportunity Assessment 2014-2020 the FMI report states that the demand for pay-TV services will continue to remain strong during the forecast period 2014 to 2020. The study has stated on a global scale the VOD market will scale $263 billion by next year.
Popularity of Pay TV services, especially digital cable services, is increasing on account of deployment of 4K Ultra HD technology. Pay TV service providers are focusing on clubbing several advanced technologies, such as ITV and DVBS-2 based MPEG-4 video format with HD DTH. Integration of these technologies has given consumers a broad array of options to choose from, increasing the Pay TV subscriber base.
The report sub-segments the global VOD market into seven major regions in which North America and Western Europe are the two largest markets globally currently.
The North America VOD market is expected to surpass US$ 100 billion mark by the end of this year. Proliferation of connected devices and increased spending on video services is expected to fuel the market in North America in the near future.
As is the global trend, pay TV services account for the bulk of the revenues in North America as well. Valued at US$ 91.6 billion in 2014, the Pay TV services market in North America is expected to reach US$ 103 billion by the end of 2016.
Cisco, SeaChange, Massive, and Pace are among the leading software players in the global VOD market whereas the leading service providers include Netflix, Amazon, iTunes, and Hulu.
The Western Europe VOD market is expected to reach a valuation of US$ 55.6 billion by the end of 2015. Demand for VOD services in Western Europe is growing at an annual rate of over 4%. The key players in the Western Europe VOD market include Agama Technologies, Exterity, Youview, BBC, and Orange.
iWorld
Snapchat parent Snap cuts 16 per cent of workforce in AI-driven restructuring
The Snapchat parent is axing around 1,000 jobs and closing 300 open roles to save $500m, as artificial intelligence makes smaller teams the new normal
CALIFORNIA: Snap is snapping. The Snapchat parent has confirmed plans to cut around 1,000 employees, roughly 16 per cent of its full-time workforce, as it bets that artificial intelligence can do what headcount once required. Shares jumped more than 10 per cent in premarket trading on the news, a brisk vote of confidence from a market that has watched the stock shed about 31 per cent this year.
The restructuring, which also closes more than 300 open roles, follows pressure from activist investor Irenic Capital Management, which holds an economic interest of about 2.5 per cent in the company and has been loudly pushing Snap to tighten its portfolio and lift performance. The firm got what it asked for, and then some.
Chief executive Evan Spiegel told employees the cuts would reduce annualised expenses by more than $500m by the second half of the year. The company expects to incur charges of between $95m and $130m related to the layoffs, mostly severance, with the bulk landing in the second quarter. Staff in Snap’s North America team were asked to work from home on the day of the announcement.
The financial backdrop is not without bright spots. Snap expects first-quarter revenue to rise around 12 per cent to approximately $1.53 billion, broadly in line with analyst estimates. Adjusted core profit for the January to March quarter is forecast at about $233m, comfortably ahead of Wall Street’s expectation of $186.8m.
The harder question surrounds Specs, Snap’s augmented reality smart glasses subsidiary, which Irenic has urged the company to spin off or shut down entirely. The unit has absorbed more than $3.5 billion in investment and burns through approximately $500m in cash annually. Snap is pressing ahead regardless, with a consumer product expected later this year, even as Meta leads the market in the segment.
Spiegel is betting that leaner teams, smarter machines and a consumer AR play can restore Snap’s credibility with investors who have run out of patience. The redundancy notices have gone out. The harder restructuring, the one that requires a hit product rather than a headcount reduction, is still very much pending.
