iWorld
Zee beefs up OTT strategy; launches original digital content
MUMBAI: At a time when multiple companies are putting their might behind pumping up their over-the-top (OTT) offerings like Hotstar, ErosNow, Sony Liv and HOOQ amongst others, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) is not one to sit back. Putting the money where their mouth is, Zee is upping the ante in by launching original digital content for its OTT and digital platforms.
In order to offer content anywhere and at any time, Zeel has got its entire digital ecosystem – Zee Digital Convergence (ZDC) – and its content studio – Essel Vision Productions – to design and introduce an instrumental musical show -#LifeIsMusic.
Starting 15 June, the seven-week series will be available on its OTT platform DittoTV and digital platform www.lifeismusic.in.
Original content (both long and short) has emerged as a new form of storytelling in the digital space as millennials continue to alter their entertainment consumption habits. Banking on this very same learning, Zeel has now got into producing original content for its digital platform. #LifeIsMusic celebrates world music and highlights the true value of musicians who are experts in the instrumental genre.
The multi-platform instrumental reality series will be available for audiences all over the globe and will showcase the value of instrumental music in a holistic manner – across a variety of popular and melodious music genres.
#LifeIsMusic will feature regular upload of unplugged original music compositions every Monday and Friday for a duration of seven weeks. The show has three renowned maestros on its panel – Louiz Banks (the Godfather of Indian Jazz and Grammy Award nominee), Taufiq Qureshi (ace percussionist) and Purbayan Chaterjee (one of the leading young Sitar players of India) mentoring budding professional musicians. Each maestro will form a band of four musicians each of whom specialize in different instruments – like percussions, rhythm guitars, bass guitar, sitar, sarod, flute etc.
The show will be promoted across all the major websites including zeetv.com, zeenews.com, india.com, dnaindia.com, bollywoodlife.com, dittotv.com amongst others.
Over the past few months, the video on demand (VoD) industry has been witnessing major activity as these platforms have become an extra content delivery arm for major entertainment business houses. While earlier the VoD platforms were used as a source for archival content, the new players are bending the rules. In order to gain eyeballs, the players are not only making original content, but also premiering movies and songs.
Zee Digital Convergence CEO Debashish Ghosh said, “#LifeIsMusic is a clutter-breaking original concept with a goal to inspire passion, unleash creativity and realize dreams in a digital era of free downloads. We are confident that the series will soon become a favourite destination for all music lovers – especially when you want to experience quality music never heard before. This exclusive series aims to engage, educate and entertain the youth about the variety and possibilities that exist with instrumental music. It will reach out to around 50 million viewers, making it a truly global multi-screen phenomenon! The platform also seeks to encourage aspiring musicians to showcase their talent to global audiences – and demonstrate their skill and creativity transparently to global music talent scouts.”
Essel Vision business head Akash Chawla added, “Zee has always set new benchmarks with innovative content across platforms and as its content studio, With today’s evolving online world, producing #LifeIsMusic series is in sync with our aim to design content that empowers talent to achieve their creative visions across all mediums.”
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.
