iWorld
YuppTV-ETV partner exclusively for Telugu channels for US market
MUMBAI: Clearly this is going to be something that’s going to work in its favour. The Emerald Media funded-UdayReddy run (over the top/video on demand) OTT/VOD service YuppTV has signed an exclusive partnership with the Ramoji Rao-promoted K. Bapineedu-run ETV Network to stream ETV Telugu’s entertainment content in the US market. Viewers in Uncle Sam will get to see ETV Telugu shows like Padutha Teeyaga, Jabardasth, Extra Jabadasth and Manasu Mamatha exclusively on YuppTV.
YuppTV’s target audience is the south Asian diaspora globally and a substantial portion of the hardware and software engineers working in the US are from either Andhra Pradesh or Telangana. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella for example was born to Telugu speaking parents. An estimate is that around 250,000 Indians working the US speak Telugu. And more than 2 million Telugu speaking Indians are dispersed the world over.
ETV is also introducing introducing ETV Life, ETV Plus, ETV Cinema and ETV Abhiruchi for the first time in the US. As part of the association, fans of ETV shall be able to access their Telugu shows on the YuppTV app available on six screens including smart TVs/blu-ray players, smart media players, PC, smartphones, tablets and gaming consoles.
“ETV Telugu’s entertainment content has been successful in striking the right chord with the users and we are happy to make the same available in the US markets, henceforth exclusively,” says YuppTV founder & CEO Uday Reddy. “We further look forward to a long term association with channels and would always strive to surprise our users with further such engaging and entertaining associations.”
ETV Network CEO K Bapineedu adds: “We have enjoyed our association with YuppTV for a while now. The decision to go exclusive on our partnership with the platform was taken due to the positive response, especially in the US market. Our entertainment shows have become popular over the time in the Indian expat community settled in the US. We further look forward to enhancing the reach of our entertainment content via the incredible penetration and popularity of YuppTV.”
YuppTV has 25,000 hours of entertainment content catalogued in its library, while nearly 2500 hours of new on-demand content is added to the YuppTV platform every day It offers live TV and catch-Up TV technology. It recently launched YuppFlix, a movie on-demand streaming service for the expat market, and YuppTV Bazaar, an online marketplace for the premium content curator.
YuppTV is currently ranked #1 Internet Pay TV platform for Indians living abroad and also the largest internet TV platform from premium content availability in India. YuppTV is the most downloaded Indian SmartTV app and it also boasts of eight million mobile downloads with 4.0 user rating.
Subscribers in India pay Rs 5 for a day pass or Rs 99 for a month’s pass to watch all of YuppTV’s content. US-based subscribers pay $15.99 monthly for a Telugu Gold Value Pack, $99.99 for a half yearly pack and $169.99 for an annual pack. It charges $29.99 per month for a Telugu Platinum Value Pack.
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iWorld
X launches XChat messaging app on iOS with calls and encryption
Standalone app marks shift from “everything app” vision, adds E2E messaging.
MUMBAI: From one big app to many small chats, X seems to be splitting its ambitions. X has rolled out its standalone messaging app, XChat, to iOS users, opening up a new front in its evolving product strategy. The app allows users to connect with existing X contacts through private and group messages, file sharing, as well as audio and video calls. The launch follows a limited beta phase, where the platform tested the product with a smaller user base to refine the experience. Now available publicly, XChat marks a notable pivot from earlier ambitions championed by Elon Musk to turn X into a single “everything app” combining messaging, payments, commerce and more.
Instead, the company under xAI ownership and backed by SpaceX appears to be building a suite of standalone applications, each targeting specific use cases while expanding its broader ecosystem.
At launch, XChat includes end-to-end encrypted messaging, PIN-based access, disappearing messages, and features such as message editing, deletion for all participants, and screenshot blocking. The company has also said the app is free from advertisements and tracking mechanisms, positioning it as a privacy-first alternative in a crowded messaging space.
However, security claims around the platform are likely to face scrutiny. Earlier iterations of XChat drew criticism from experts who argued it fell short of established encrypted platforms like Signal. With the wider rollout, the app is expected to undergo fresh evaluation to assess whether those concerns have been addressed.
Beyond messaging, XChat will also house X’s Communities feature, which is being discontinued on the main platform due to low usage and spam concerns. Migrating these users could provide an early boost to adoption, effectively turning XChat into both a communication and community hub.
The move underscores a broader recalibration at X less about cramming everything into one app, and more about spreading bets across multiple touchpoints, one message at a time.
