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  • Wipro marks 20 years of its global run with record turnout

    Wipro marks 20 years of its global run with record turnout

    BENGALURU: Wipro’s annual Spirit of Wipro Run hit a milestone on Sunday as over 62,000 employees, families, clients and partners pounded the streets in more than 100 cities worldwide.

    Executive chairman Rishad Premji flagged off the flagship event at Bengaluru’s Sree Kanteerava Stadium, while chief executive and managing director Srini Pallia led the East Brunswick, New Jersey leg. Bengaluru alone drew 14,000 runners, the highest ever.

    “This year we celebrate not just a number, but the spirit of togetherness that defines Wipro,” said Saurabh Govil, chief human resources officer.

    Each registration is matched by a corporate donation through Wipro Cares, aiding more than 85 non-profits in healthcare, education and environmental projects. The run unites employees of Wipro Limited, Wipro Enterprises, Premji Invest, the Azim Premji Foundation and Azim Premji University.

    The event dovetailed with the Wipro Bengaluru Marathon, where 35,000 runners—including elite athletes—took part. Wipro remains title sponsor for the third year running.

  • Dazn to live broadcast Fifa Club World Cup ’25 for free globally

    Dazn to live broadcast Fifa Club World Cup ’25 for free globally

    MUMBAI: Here’s even more good news for football fans. There’s more football fever being kicked into your living rooms to cheer for until you are hoarse. 

    The international football federation Fifa has signed up with streamer Dazn making it the exclusive global broadcaster of the FiFa Club World Cup 2025. Under the agreement, the tournament which will see 32 clubs from all over the world fighting it out for the trophy over 63 matches is to be live streamed on Dazn free globally in multiple languages, and includes the possibility of sub-licensing to local free to air linear broadcast networks. 

    The Fifa Club  World Cup 2025, which was launched in 2000, but had gone through a bumpy ride in certain years, was  converted into a quadrennial competition (starting 2025) when it was last held in 2023. The teams are drawn into eight groups of four, with each team playing three group stage matches in a round-robin format. The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage, starting with the round of 16 and culminating with the final.

    In its previous avatar when it was an annual competition, Real Madrid emerged as the winner on five occasions, Spanish teams have won the tournament eight times. The current champions are Manchester City which held the trophy aloft in 2023.

    The agreement to hold the exclusive global broadcast rights to the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 marks the start of a broader partnership between Dazn and Fifa. This includes integrating Fifa+,   Fifa’s library of iconic football moments and full-match replays, as well as live fixtures, into the Dazn platform. 

    The partnership begins with the draw of the Fifa Club World Cup which will be broadcast live on Dazn on 5 December. The 32 participating clubs will discover their group-stage opponents in a live studio event that will kick off at 13:00 EST/18:00 GMT/19:00 CET. The Fifa  Club World Cup 2025, which kicks off on Sunday 15 June 2025 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami will have matches being played in 12 venues across the US over a 29-day period, culminating with the final at MetLife Stadium, New York New Jersey on Sunday, 13 July 2025.

    Making a top club competition freely available to every single fan globally, the ground breaking partnership combines Dazn’s unique expertise and vision for the future with Fifa’s commitment to making football truly global, claims a press release issued by the two. 

    It also helps that the Fifa Club World Cup has finally found a home as this will help the football federation rope in sponsors. Reports say that the clubs have been asking for $50 million per head to participate ; so far it has managed to sign up Chinese electronics firm Hi-sense, Anheuser Busch (AB InBev) and Bank of America as sponsors.  Additionally, reports say that the deal between Dazn and Fifa is valued at about $1 billion, though no financial terms were disclosed. 

    “I am delighted to announce that Fifa, in partnership with Dazn and Fifa+, will bring the best of club football for free to everywhere in the world, meaning that every single football fan across the globe can watch the best players from the 32 best clubs compete in the new Fifa Club World Cup to be the first official Fifa Club World Champions’,” said Fifa president Gianni Infantino “The new Fifa Club World Cup is a merit-based, inclusive tournament that will be the pinnacle of global club football, capturing the imagination of players and fans across the world. Through this broadcasting agreement, billions of football fans worldwide can now watch what will be the most widely accessible club football tournament ever – and for free. Football Unites the World.” 

    Added Dazn chief executive officer Shay Segev: “This groundbreaking deal with Fifa is a major milestone in Dazn’s journey to be the ultimate entertainment platform of choice for sports fans everywhere. We’re delighted to have the exclusive rights to this new chapter in global club football, marking the start of our long-term relationship with FIFA and cementing our status as the home of football. Dazn is the only sports streaming platform that has a truly global reach, with world-leading technology and a single-minded focus to deliver the very best digital experience for all sports fans. We’re committed to ensuring that every fan can watch every moment of the thrilling action from this new prime club tournament.”

    Dazn – a fully interactive and immersive platform  – enables fans to watch, play, buy and connect, all in one place and with a single account. It is available on all connected devices, including smart TVs, smartphones, tablets and game consoles. It has a large portfolio of sports  rights and  that includes the world’s most prestigious leagues. Its content is watched by over 300 million viewers in more than 200 markets. It is normally charges a subscription fee for premium sports tournaments.

    A detractor says that Dazn and Fifa have taken the decision to stream the Fifa Club World Cup for free as the tournament is working on gaining prestige amongst football fans. As well as advertisers.

    “It does  not have the respectability of the La Liga or the EPL. In its annual avatar it did not get even a fraction of the eyeballs the EPL does. Hence by streaming it for free, both Fifa and Dazn are hoping it will grow on football fans,” says a football rights expert. 

    The critics can carp from the sidelines, but with both Fifa and Dazn working in tandem, the Fifa Club World Cup 2025 could well end scoring well with viewers. And come out a winner!

                                             FIFA Club World Cup 2025 – participating clubs

    Africa: Al Ahly FC (EGY), Espérance Sportive de Tunis (TUN), Mamelodi Sundowns FC (RSA), Wydad AC (MAR) 

    Asia: Al Ain FC (UAE), Al Hilal (KSA), Ulsan HD (KOR), Urawa Red Diamonds (JPN) 

    Europe: Atlético de Madrid (ESP), FC Bayern München (GER), SL Benfica (POR), Borussia Dortmund (GER), Chelsea FC (ENG), FC Internazionale Milano (ITA), Juventus FC (ITA), Manchester City (ENG), Paris Saint-Germain (FRA), FC Porto (POR), Real Madrid CF (ESP), FC Salzburg (AUT) 

    North and Central America and the Caribbean: CF Monterrey (MEX), CF Pachuca (MEX), Club León (MEX), Inter Miami CF (USA), Seattle Sounders FC (USA) Oceania: Auckland City FC (NZL) 

    South America: CA Boca Juniors (ARG), Botafogo (BRA), CR Flamengo (BRA), Fluminense FC (BRA), SE Palmeiras (BRA), CA River Plate (ARG)

  • Amul plans to expand in the US

    Amul plans to expand in the US

    MUMBAI: Amul, the world leader in producing milk products, is all set to expand its presence in North America.

     

    The brand which represents the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) will be launching variants of dairy products – yogurt, lassi and curd – in the US and Canada.

    As reported in Business Standard, the brand will be eyeing the European countries as well. GCMMF will start manufacturing ghee (clarified butter) and paneer (cottage cheese) at a plant in New Jersey from February this year. It has entered into an agreement with a local manufacturing plant which is owned by a non-resident Indian.

     

    GCMMF which exports around Rs 100 crore worth of dairy products every year to the US, West Asia and Europe may also opt to buy directly from local dairy farmers. The report in the financial paper also says that Amul will be selling its products in markets with significant Indian population such as New Jersey, New York and Boston.

  • Dance India Dance USA edition finale on 7 December

    Dance India Dance USA edition finale on 7 December

    MUMBAI: Zee TV Americas together with Arya Dance Academy International is all set for the first ever Dance India Dance USA Edition. More than 5,000 contestants from 16 cities in North America auditioned, out of which 20 contestants were handpicked by industry professionals to participate in live competition at the State Theater in New Brunswick, New Jersey on Saturday, 7 December starting at 4:00 pm.  

     

    Each contestant will be performing a two-minute dance number. To conclude the competition, the final five contestants will compete in a dance-off.  Stunts, costumes, and bursts of talent will fill the stage as dancers battle it out for the winning title.

     

    Zee TV Americas GM Sameer Targe said; “Dance India Dance now in its fourth season continues to top the charts. This year we went a step further and decided to create a platform for South Asian youth here in America. This step is in continuation of our efforts to localise our programming and connect with our first generation as well as our second generation south Asian audiences.”

     

    The competition will be hosted by Punar Vivaah sensation Karan V. Grover and judged by DID 4 judge Feroz Khan, DID season 1 winner Salman Khan and the founder of Arya Dance Academy, Rupal Patel. The live audience will also get a chance to participate in voting for their favourite contestants via SMS.

     

    Founder of Arya Dance Academy, Rupal Patel said: “Arya Dance Academy is excited to work alongside Zee TV in bringing Dance India Dance to the North America and providing dancers across the US and Canada with the platform to compete at the highest level.  Throughout the audition process we have seen a great amount of talent with diverse dance styles ranging from Bollywood to contemporary to classical Indian dance.  We cannot wait to see self taught dancers to professionally trained dancers come together on the same stage on 7 December at Dance India Dance USA Edition!”

  • NBC Universal in restructuring mode for the digital era

    NBC Universal in restructuring mode for the digital era

    MUMBAI: US media conglomerate NBC Universal has announced NBCU 2.0. This is a wide-ranging strategic initiative to assure future growth, streamline and strengthen operations, and exploit opportunities created by the rapidly evolving digital and global marketplace.

     
    NBCU 2.0 will seek to maximise the potential of the entire NBC Universal portfolio, including broadcast, cable, film, and theme parks, by creating operating efficiencies and reallocating resources to invest in new growth areas. The initiative the firm says continues the evolution of NBC Universal, marked in recent years by significant investments such as Vivendi Universal Entertainment, Telemundo and iVillage. NBCU 2.0 will enhance ongoing efforts to redirect traditional analogue resources toward high-growth digital areas and international expansion.

    NBC Universal has struggled with weak ad sales and profits. The structuring plan will reduce annual expenses by $750 million. This will be partly done by cutting 700 jobs. The moves, which have been in the works for more than a year, were announced by General Electric vice chairman and NBCU chairman/CEO Bob Wright. NBC U profit dropped 10 per cent during ththird quarter, pulled down by lower ratings at NBC which has struggled after the departure of high profile shows like Friends.

    NBC is said to be looking to ease off of scripted dramas, that can cost several millions of dollars per episode, in the 8 pm time slot in favour of less expensive game shows and other fare. The advertiser interest is not enough to justify the expense of scripted shows indicate reports. To give a cost comparison to readers the game show Deal or No Deal costs $1.1 million an episode, while the drama Friday Night Lights costs more than double at $2.6 million an episode. So in the first hour of primetime there will be more of game shows rather than dramas.

    Wright says, “Success in this business means quickly adjusting to and anticipating change. This initiative is designed to help us exploit technology and focus our resources, as we continue our transformation into a digital media company for the 21st century”.

    In many cases, the company says that savings will be reinvested in higher-growth areas. The focus is going to be on tapping into the digital arena. Digital revenues are expected to exceed $1 billion by 2009. Recent growth has been driven by initiatives such as the partnership between Yahoo and Telemundo to develop the leading Hispanic Internet destination; the launch of NBC WeatherPlus, nbbc, nbcsports.com, cnbc.com, and dotcomedy.com; the creation of several other original broadband channels; the development of interactive television and digital cinema applications; and the delivery of a 360-degree content experience via online and wireless platforms.

     
    NBCU Television Group: As part of NBCU 2.0, the business models in News and Entertainment will be further adapted to exploit the opportunities of the changing media landscape.

    NBC Universal Television Group CEO Jeff Zucker says, “NBC Universal 2.0 will prepare us for future growth from a position of strength. With new momentum in prime time at NBC, continued leadership from NBC News, real growth at Telemundo, and solid performances in virtually every other division of our Television Group, there is no better time to re-engineer the company for the revolutionary changes to come. We have to recognize that the changes of the next five years will dwarf the changes of the last fifty.”

    News: Newsgathering operations will be further modernised to improve efficiencies. As part of the redesign, NBC Universal’s 24-hour cable news channel, MSNBC, will move its operations to the company’s production facilities at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, and Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. The move will streamline newsgathering operations and result in better utilisation of both state-of-the-art facilities.

    In addition, in an extension of the successful centralisation strategy developed by the NBC Universal TV Stations Group in recent years, the company is creating consolidated news facilities in Burbank. The facility will support a number of news and information operations, including the NBC and Telemundo networks, KNBC, KVEA, KWHY. The new configuration the company says will increase productivity and improve communication, coordination and resource-sharing among newsgathering units. Reviews are also under way at NBC News bureaus and facilities around the world.

    New digital distribution opportunities and synergies will be created by improvements in how information is gathered, shared and distributed across multiple news and information platforms. These changes will be implemented at the NBC network and stations levels, as well as at the Telemundo stations, where new emphasis will be placed on regionalised news programming with local content in some smaller markets.

    Entertainment: On the entertainment side, the TV Group will maximise its ability to generate revenues across all platforms – including new digital distribution outlets – through a business strategy that reduces NBCU’s dependence on traditional content distribution methods and advertising models. This includes bringing content to consumers sooner on a variety of platforms, creating new windows or opportunities in the traditional syndication market, and developing alternative advertising metrics.

    NBCU 2.0 will also continue to make the growing Hispanic market a priority, as highlighted by the significant recent investments in Telemundo’s prime-time production, a new studio and news bureau in Mexico, and the acquisition of three TV stations in the last 18 months.

    Universal Studios : The initiative will focus on the recent developments in technology and media that are transforming the film industry, with the goal of competitively positioning the Studio for continued growth and success.

    Universal Studios president and COO Ron Meyer says, “As a business we are continually looking to be smarter about how we develop, distribute, and market our films around the world . “We plan to realign our operations to maximize growth opportunities in an increasingly competitive and evolving industry. Making these changes now will reinforce our position as an industry leader.”

    The strategic realignment of domestic theatrical, home entertainment and television marketing and distribution divisions will realize cost savings through consolidating positions and maximizing efficiencies across all aspects of the business units. Savings will also be realised though consolidating locations, support functions and marketing activities at Universal Pictures International, Universal Pictures International Entertainment and NBC Universal International Television Distribution.

    Universal Parks and Resorts Group will continue to look for strategic growth opportunities and cost reductions at their properties in Los Angeles and Orlando.