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British Airways will give you VR for in-flight entertainment

Commercial virtual reality has, so far, mostly manifested itself in the living rooms of people with lots of disposable income. But British Airways is hopping on a VR bandwagon that could actually be pretty useful. The UK airline announced Wednesday that it would start offering VR headsets in a trial capacity to select passengers on flights. The trial lasts through the end of 2019 and has a fairly limited scope; you need to be in first class flying from London Heathrow airport to New York's JFK. Anyone who fits the criteria will be able to watch movies or engage in therapeutic VR experiences, per the British Airways press release. As long as you don't mind being totally unaware of your surroundings, that could be a nice way to spend a trans-Atlantic flight. In fact, that might be the point for those who aren't big fans of flying.

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Virtualization, Media and Broadcasting

The crowd still matters for live sports broadcasting

Article | July 13, 2022

At opposite sides of the globe, two top-flight international football events have kicked off over the last week. In semi-vaccinated Europe the month-long Euro 2020 tournament began on Friday June 11th, with 11 countries hosting the competition across Europe. On Sunday June 13th in Brazil (a country which had now lost nearly half a million lives to COVID-19) the 2021 Copa America kicked off, with the final taking place on July 10th2021. While Euro 2020 is taking place in front of reduced capacity crowds of fans in stadiums, the Copa America is being played behind closed doors with entire participating national delegations required to be vaccinated, and delegations limited to 65 members. Euro 2020’s official motto ‘Live it. For Real’ can be taken as a declaration of intent to host a top-flight mass sporting event as close to pre-pandemic conditions as feasibly possible. The criteria for live spectator participation for UEFA (the event organisers) was key to this. UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin confirmed the importance of live spectators at matches in an interview back in March where he stated "We have several scenarios, but the one guarantee we can make is that the option of playing any Euro 2020 match in an empty stadium is off the table. Every host must guarantee there will be fans at their games."

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Media and Broadcasting, Business

Branded Entertainment in B2B: Why is it Important?

Article | August 4, 2022

Global B2B companies churn out content pieces such as infographics, case studies, assessments, and other forms of thought leadership content to create brand awareness. But is this content enough to engage the customers and the market? Not really. Marketers like you need to look into branded entertainment to get more customer engagement and brand loyalty. What is Branded Entertainment? Adweek loosely describes “branded entertainment” as any content that starts a positive conversation around a product, service, or set of values. This content builds a story around your product or services, showing it in a positive light and getting the audience to engage in your content as much as a film or a TV show. As opposed to other marketing endeavors, branded entertainment doesn’t focus on your products and their features but on entertaining the audience. Incorporating Branded Entertainment into Your Marketing Strategy Here are some ways to get it done without much hassle: Web Series Original programming, such as web series published on the brand’s social media channels, can help you raise awareness through stories that share your brand’s values instead of directly marketing your product or services. PR Stunts Create social media brand content that is entertaining and exciting enough for the audience to make it viral. Such PR brings positive media attention to your brand and creates mass awareness for your brand or product. Videos Volvo's entertaining video of Van Damme's split stunt on YouTube has 114.5 million views. The video didn't need a call-to-action because it wasn’t to convert leads. Instead, it was meant to showcase a piece of business-use truck technology and get engagement. Podcasting GE used podcasting for advertising twice, once with its show ‘The Message’ and again with its new series ‘LifeAfter.’ Neither show discusses GE's products. Instead, they were "GE-presented" and were received well. Summing It Up People are less likely to comment on or share brand posts directly, but they are more likely to tweet or share them on their Instagram stories. This way you can measure the impact of branded entertainment. B2B marketers should consider branded entertainment as a way to build trust and start conversations between their brands and their audience to get a long-term ROI.

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Technologies, Business

Ongoing transitions in gaming industry

Article | August 3, 2022

The gaming industry is continuously evolving with current transitions derived from VR/AR, blockchain, 5G and cloud computing. The aim of this transition is to fulfill requirements of gamers such as reducing the cost of gaming, developing more immersive experience, converting tools bought in games as transferable assets, enabling gamers to play graphic intensive games on low cost devices. Currently popular games are on the go to create augmented reality versions to be played on AR headsets with their mobile phones. The google stadia platform(a platform where graphic intensive games run in data centers and gamers can play them via web browsers) has also enabled the gaming industry to eliminate the computing limitations imposed by running games in mobile devices. The only barrier in coupling both technologies to have the best of both worlds is low bandwidth of 4G which will soon be expanded when 5G rolls out in the market. TRANSITIONS IN GAMING INDUSTRY The real time game play is currently not possible for games running in data centers and being rendered on web browsers of a gamer’s device as there is latency in reflecting the character’s action on the press of a button. Such a transition will eliminate the need for highly expensive gaming consoles which has been curbing the growth rate of the gaming industry. One more concern from gamers that’s being a barrier in revenue generation for the gaming industry is that the weapons, power packs, kits and tool kits bought in any game are simply virtual and become useless when they are done with the game. The idea to buy such time bound utility becomes insensible for players. So, now the gaming industry is evaluating the option to register these buyouts in games on blockchain which can later be used as a non tangible asset by players to trade easily. The gaming theory that’s getting popularised these days will eventually leverage the AR and VR technology to transform the education industry. The idea to provide customers with user manuals running in augmented reality that can enable a non trained worker to operate the machine is also booming. Solidworks by 3Dplm is one such tool that’s heading in this direction. The transitions mentioned above are quite exciting and the way gaming industry and mentioned technologies are evolving we can expect to get our hands on such exciting gaming technology soon too at a fraction of current costs.

Read More
Media and Broadcasting

FILM PRODUCERS FLIP BARGAINING TABLE WITH UNIONIZING EFFORT

Article | May 21, 2021

Movie producers often find themselves negotiating with talent and crew members, and/or their production union representatives, over pay and benefits. But a group of 108 producers flipped the script Thursday in announcing they were looking to form a union of their own.Higher minimum pay and health benefits were cited as the two major reasons. While the group, called the Producers Union, boasts some heavy hitters such as Chris Moore (Manchester by the Sea) and Rebecca Green (It Follows), they made it clear that the traditional image of a Hollywood producer is misleading. Many are just getting by, project to project, looking for a breakout hit to up their quote. According to a survey released this year, 41% of producers made less than $25,000 in the pre-pandemic boom times of 2019. The Producers Union has developed a constitution with provisions for dues and diversity initiatives, with the aim of eventually negotiating a collective bargaining agreement with distributors and other film financiers. Previous efforts by producers to unionize have been thwarted by the courts and the National Labor Relations Board, according to Variety, as the NLRB saw them as supervisors and employers – which creates a high barrier to organizing.

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Virtualization, Media and Broadcasting

B2B Movie Placements: What to Expect?

Article | July 13, 2022

At opposite sides of the globe, two top-flight international football events have kicked off over the last week. In semi-vaccinated Europe the month-long Euro 2020 tournament began on Friday June 11th, with 11 countries hosting the competition across Europe. On Sunday June 13th in Brazil (a country which had now lost nearly half a million lives to COVID-19) the 2021 Copa America kicked off, with the final taking place on July 10th2021. While Euro 2020 is taking place in front of reduced capacity crowds of fans in stadiums, the Copa America is being played behind closed doors with entire participating national delegations required to be vaccinated, and delegations limited to 65 members. Euro 2020’s official motto ‘Live it. For Real’ can be taken as a declaration of intent to host a top-flight mass sporting event as close to pre-pandemic conditions as feasibly possible. The criteria for live spectator participation for UEFA (the event organisers) was key to this. UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin confirmed the importance of live spectators at matches in an interview back in March where he stated "We have several scenarios, but the one guarantee we can make is that the option of playing any Euro 2020 match in an empty stadium is off the table. Every host must guarantee there will be fans at their games."

Read More
Media and Broadcasting, Business

Boost Your B2B SaaS Business with Live Streaming

Article | August 4, 2022

Global B2B companies churn out content pieces such as infographics, case studies, assessments, and other forms of thought leadership content to create brand awareness. But is this content enough to engage the customers and the market? Not really. Marketers like you need to look into branded entertainment to get more customer engagement and brand loyalty. What is Branded Entertainment? Adweek loosely describes “branded entertainment” as any content that starts a positive conversation around a product, service, or set of values. This content builds a story around your product or services, showing it in a positive light and getting the audience to engage in your content as much as a film or a TV show. As opposed to other marketing endeavors, branded entertainment doesn’t focus on your products and their features but on entertaining the audience. Incorporating Branded Entertainment into Your Marketing Strategy Here are some ways to get it done without much hassle: Web Series Original programming, such as web series published on the brand’s social media channels, can help you raise awareness through stories that share your brand’s values instead of directly marketing your product or services. PR Stunts Create social media brand content that is entertaining and exciting enough for the audience to make it viral. Such PR brings positive media attention to your brand and creates mass awareness for your brand or product. Videos Volvo's entertaining video of Van Damme's split stunt on YouTube has 114.5 million views. The video didn't need a call-to-action because it wasn’t to convert leads. Instead, it was meant to showcase a piece of business-use truck technology and get engagement. Podcasting GE used podcasting for advertising twice, once with its show ‘The Message’ and again with its new series ‘LifeAfter.’ Neither show discusses GE's products. Instead, they were "GE-presented" and were received well. Summing It Up People are less likely to comment on or share brand posts directly, but they are more likely to tweet or share them on their Instagram stories. This way you can measure the impact of branded entertainment. B2B marketers should consider branded entertainment as a way to build trust and start conversations between their brands and their audience to get a long-term ROI.

Read More
Technologies, Business

AR in B2B Sales: What to Expect

Article | August 3, 2022

The gaming industry is continuously evolving with current transitions derived from VR/AR, blockchain, 5G and cloud computing. The aim of this transition is to fulfill requirements of gamers such as reducing the cost of gaming, developing more immersive experience, converting tools bought in games as transferable assets, enabling gamers to play graphic intensive games on low cost devices. Currently popular games are on the go to create augmented reality versions to be played on AR headsets with their mobile phones. The google stadia platform(a platform where graphic intensive games run in data centers and gamers can play them via web browsers) has also enabled the gaming industry to eliminate the computing limitations imposed by running games in mobile devices. The only barrier in coupling both technologies to have the best of both worlds is low bandwidth of 4G which will soon be expanded when 5G rolls out in the market. TRANSITIONS IN GAMING INDUSTRY The real time game play is currently not possible for games running in data centers and being rendered on web browsers of a gamer’s device as there is latency in reflecting the character’s action on the press of a button. Such a transition will eliminate the need for highly expensive gaming consoles which has been curbing the growth rate of the gaming industry. One more concern from gamers that’s being a barrier in revenue generation for the gaming industry is that the weapons, power packs, kits and tool kits bought in any game are simply virtual and become useless when they are done with the game. The idea to buy such time bound utility becomes insensible for players. So, now the gaming industry is evaluating the option to register these buyouts in games on blockchain which can later be used as a non tangible asset by players to trade easily. The gaming theory that’s getting popularised these days will eventually leverage the AR and VR technology to transform the education industry. The idea to provide customers with user manuals running in augmented reality that can enable a non trained worker to operate the machine is also booming. Solidworks by 3Dplm is one such tool that’s heading in this direction. The transitions mentioned above are quite exciting and the way gaming industry and mentioned technologies are evolving we can expect to get our hands on such exciting gaming technology soon too at a fraction of current costs.

Read More
Media and Broadcasting

FILM PRODUCERS FLIP BARGAINING TABLE WITH UNIONIZING EFFORT

Article | May 21, 2021

Movie producers often find themselves negotiating with talent and crew members, and/or their production union representatives, over pay and benefits. But a group of 108 producers flipped the script Thursday in announcing they were looking to form a union of their own.Higher minimum pay and health benefits were cited as the two major reasons. While the group, called the Producers Union, boasts some heavy hitters such as Chris Moore (Manchester by the Sea) and Rebecca Green (It Follows), they made it clear that the traditional image of a Hollywood producer is misleading. Many are just getting by, project to project, looking for a breakout hit to up their quote. According to a survey released this year, 41% of producers made less than $25,000 in the pre-pandemic boom times of 2019. The Producers Union has developed a constitution with provisions for dues and diversity initiatives, with the aim of eventually negotiating a collective bargaining agreement with distributors and other film financiers. Previous efforts by producers to unionize have been thwarted by the courts and the National Labor Relations Board, according to Variety, as the NLRB saw them as supervisors and employers – which creates a high barrier to organizing.

Read More
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We are a company unlike any other in the world. At NASCAR you will find a community of diverse individuals focused on our history, but with an eye toward the future. We want you to bring your experience, skills and passion to our close-knit, high-energy environment in which our employees thrive and where you can prosper.

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ComingSoon Expands Entertainment News Coverage

PR Newswire | October 05, 2023

Evolve Media LLC, a passion-based publisher of some of the most influential internet brands since 1996, announced that its marquee entertainment site ComingSoon is continuing to grow and expand its coverage areas. ComingSoon will expand to new coverage areas, including Bollywood With traffic up 79 percent since April 2023, ComingSoon is expanding in order to continue its rapid growth since a redesign was launched in December 2022. The site is now broadening its entertainment coverage into new areas, including Indian films and television, Korean dramas, reality television, documentaries, and true crime. All of these new verticals will be easily accessible in the site's revamped navigation bar as coverage is rolled out. ComingSoon will also further commit resources to delivering top-notch anime, documentary and horror coverage, which have become key elements of the entertainment site. It will also continue to produce top-quality features and reviews that are just as engaging as they are informative, while also conducting interviews with some of Hollywood's biggest directors and stars. "Our goal is to make ComingSoon a one-stop destination for media consumers all over the world," said Todd Jacobs, Director of Content & Operations at Evolve Media. "With these strategic investments, ComingSoon will exponentially expand their global audience." "Thanks to streaming, we've seen entertainment around the globe become pop culture phenomenons," said Tyler Treese, Frontpage Editorial Manager of Evolve Media's Entertainment and Gaming Division. "International hits like Squid Game and Jawan have shown that Korea and India are producing incredible content, while anime continues to grow in popularity. We'll finally be able to cover these areas with the news coverage they deserve, and help fans figure out the next show to binge or what film to invite their friends over to watch." About Evolve Media, LLC Evolve Media is a premium publisher of leading enthusiast destinations for influential men and women. Leveraging proprietary advertising and publishing technologies, as well as hundreds of talented content professionals, Evolve Media offers premium and engaging content to its readers, while offering marketers the tools needed to execute custom, content-led marketing solutions that reach its audience of over 78 million people globally each month.

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Applications

Cineverse Reaches Agreement to Integrate Whip Media's Content Partner Payments Platform for FAST, AVOD, SVOD and EST into Matchpoint Insights

Cineverse Corp | September 26, 2023

Cineverse Corp., a global streaming technology and entertainment company with one of the world's largest portfolios of streaming channels and content libraries, announced today a partnership with Whip Media, the leading enterprise software platform and data provider to the world's largest entertainment organizations. Using its Content Value Management (CVM) software platform, Whip Media will help Cineverse automate and more efficiently manage content partner royalty payments for its expansive distribution network across Cineverse direct and third-party platforms. Cineverse distributes content from hundreds of content providers through its FAST/AVOD channels, SVOD service, TVOD/EST distribution and physical home entertainment products. The rapid growth of Cineverse required a new system to scale and efficiently handle financial activities for the high volume of content partner contracts and licenses, such as royalty calculations, revenue statement generation and issuance of payment to partners on a monthly and quarterly basis. Currently, Cineverse must create over 1,700 complex financial statements per quarter which require significant manual effort to manage. Cineverse will leverage the CVM Platform for Content Partner Payments to capture all contractual financial terms for each content provider, and ingest performance and revenue data from Matchpoint Insights – part of Cineverse's proprietary suite of streaming technology products. By consolidating sales, performance, and revenue data, CVM can automate the calculation of royalties due to each provider and accurately generate royalty statements. What has historically been a manual process will be transformed into a highly scalable solution that radically reduces costs, increases efficiency, and improves accuracy. "We're excited to partner with Cineverse, an entertainment technology and streaming trailblazer that has created an innovative solution that eliminates the expensive, time-consuming manual process required for preparing film and television assets for broad global distribution," said Saj Jayasinghe, Whip Media's EVP of Global Revenue. "Our partnership will allow Cineverse to optimize their workflow and automate their digital supply chain by utilizing our platform to streamline their financial reconciliation process and extend automation to a much higher level on the financial side." "Our partnership with Whip Media is critical as it helps fill a gap in our technology stack. We feel that developing financial-based software is not our core competency so partnering with Whip Media and leveraging their best-in-class technology allows us to address a significant unmet need in the rapidly growing streaming marketplace: an end-to-end solution from content ingestion and delivery all the way to reporting and payment," said Tony Huidor, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Technology Officer at Cineverse. "This comes at a time when the legacy entertainment industry desperately needs to shift towards video-on-demand and FAST services, giving us the ability to scale quickly via automation and pave the way via an all-in-one solution." About Whip Media Whip Media is reimagining content licensing to create a smarter, more connected entertainment ecosystem. We help the world's leading entertainment organizations succeed in today's high-volume, high-velocity global content environment with a market leading cloud software platform that combines unique, actionable insights with scalable, connected workflows for licensing, content planning and financial operations. About Cineverse Cineverse is a global streaming technology and entertainment company with one of the world's largest portfolios of streaming channels and content libraries, all powered by its advanced, proprietary technology platform. Cineverse currently features enthusiast brands for subscription video on demand (SVOD), advertising-based video on demand (AVOD) and free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels. Cineverse entertains consumers around the globe by providing premium feature film and television series, enthusiast streaming channels and technology services to some of the world's largest media, retail, and technology companies.

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Solutions

IMAX and Prime Focus Technologies (PFT) expand strategic relationship into the streaming ecosystem

Media and Entertainment | September 14, 2023

Entertainment technology industry leader IMAX Corporation® (NYSE: IMAX) and PFT, the creator of AI-powered technology solutions for the Media and Entertainment (M&E) industry, today announced plans to expand their strategic relationship beyond theatrical and into the streaming ecosystem. Under the arrangement, IMAX will expand access to its Stream Smart™ technology to PFT customers across Europe, Asia, and Australia. The expanded partnership will dramatically increase the global availability of Stream Smart™, which helps streaming platforms deliver maximum picture quality while significantly reducing distribution and storage costs. "We are thrilled to deepen our partnership with IMAX, an industry trailblazer with a remarkable legacy of revolutionizing the global entertainment industry," said Ramki Sankaranarayanan, Global CEO of PFT. "For over a decade, CLEAR®, our flagship product, has spearheaded digital packaging and delivery services for prominent streaming platforms worldwide. CLEAR® & Stream Smart will help optimize our customers' encoding pipeline, so they deliver better streaming quality while optimizing CDN & storage costs." "Many of Hollywood's biggest streaming platforms use Stream Smart™ to ensure quality and reduce costs, and we're excited to work with our partners at PFT to extend the reach of our technologies throughout key markets in Europe, Asia, and Australia," said Vikram Arumilli, General Manager of Streaming and Consumer Technology at IMAX. "Our suite of streaming technology products, including Stream Smart™, provides a best-in-class service for direct-to-consumer broadcast and streaming companies, and PFT's' ability to leverage this for their customers is a win-win for both organizations." PFT and its parent company, DNEG, are industry leaders providing a full suite of technology and creative solutions, including IMAX post-production and 3D mastering. IMAX and DNEG joined forces in 2022 for post-production, which included Indian films like Jawan, Pathaan, and RRR. This extended partnership will build upon the established theatrical relationship between IMAX and DNEG to develop a comprehensive video optimization solution. Stream Smart™ is an enterprise software product designed to deliver the best image quality and optimize delivery to unlock cost savings. This product was built from cutting-edge scientific advancements, state-of-the-art engineering, trusted studio relationships, and rooted in a real-world at-scale Emmy®-winning collaboration with Disney Streaming Services and SSIMWAVE. Stream Smart™ will be the centerpiece of the IMAX showcase at IBC 2023. Sign up to meet with PFT and IMAX Streaming & Consumer Technology group at IBC: About IMAX Corporation IMAX, an innovator in entertainment technology, combines proprietary software, architecture, and equipment to create experiences that take you beyond the edge of your seat to a world you've never imagined. Top filmmakers and studios are utilizing IMAX systems to connect with audiences in extraordinary ways, making IMAX's network among the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event films around the globe. IMAX is headquartered in New York, Toronto, and Los Angeles, with additional offices in London, Dublin, Tokyo, and Shanghai. As of June 30, 2023, there were 1,718 IMAX systems (1,638 commercial multiplexes, 12 commercial destinations, 68 institutional) operating in 87 countries and territories. Shares of IMAX China Holding, Inc., a subsidiary of IMAX Corporation, trade on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code "1970." About Prime Focus Technologies Prime Focus Technologies (PFT) is the creator of CLEAR® and CLEAR® AI. It offers streaming platforms, studios, and broadcasters transformational AI-led technology and media services powered by the cloud that help them lower their Total Cost of Operations (TCOP) by automating their content supply chain. PFT works with major companies like Walt Disney-owned Star TV, Channel 4, ITV, Sinclair Broadcast Group, A&E Networks, Warner Media, PBS, CBS Television Studios, 20th Century Fox Television Studios, Lionsgate, Showtime, HBO, NBCU, TERN International, Disney+ Hotstar, BCCI, Indian Premier League and more. About DNEG DNEG (www.dneg.com) is a world-leading visual entertainment services company for the creation of feature film, television, and multiplatform content, with worldwide offices and studios across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. DNEG's critically acclaimed work has earned the company seven Academy Awards® for Best Visual Effects and numerous BAFTA and Primetime EMMY® Awards for its high-quality VFX work. Current and upcoming DNEG projects on behalf of its Hollywood and global studio and production company partners include Spy Kids Armageddon (September 2023), No One Will Save You (September 2023), The Gilded Age S2 (October 2023), Nyad (November 2023), Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (December 2023), Lift (January 2024), Dune: Part Two (March 2024), Mickey 17 (March 2024), Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (April 2024), Garfield (May 2024), Borderlands (August 2024), Furiosa (2024), That Christmas, Coyote vs. Acme, The Gorge, and Animal Friends.

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Applications

ComingSoon Expands Entertainment News Coverage

PR Newswire | October 05, 2023

Evolve Media LLC, a passion-based publisher of some of the most influential internet brands since 1996, announced that its marquee entertainment site ComingSoon is continuing to grow and expand its coverage areas. ComingSoon will expand to new coverage areas, including Bollywood With traffic up 79 percent since April 2023, ComingSoon is expanding in order to continue its rapid growth since a redesign was launched in December 2022. The site is now broadening its entertainment coverage into new areas, including Indian films and television, Korean dramas, reality television, documentaries, and true crime. All of these new verticals will be easily accessible in the site's revamped navigation bar as coverage is rolled out. ComingSoon will also further commit resources to delivering top-notch anime, documentary and horror coverage, which have become key elements of the entertainment site. It will also continue to produce top-quality features and reviews that are just as engaging as they are informative, while also conducting interviews with some of Hollywood's biggest directors and stars. "Our goal is to make ComingSoon a one-stop destination for media consumers all over the world," said Todd Jacobs, Director of Content & Operations at Evolve Media. "With these strategic investments, ComingSoon will exponentially expand their global audience." "Thanks to streaming, we've seen entertainment around the globe become pop culture phenomenons," said Tyler Treese, Frontpage Editorial Manager of Evolve Media's Entertainment and Gaming Division. "International hits like Squid Game and Jawan have shown that Korea and India are producing incredible content, while anime continues to grow in popularity. We'll finally be able to cover these areas with the news coverage they deserve, and help fans figure out the next show to binge or what film to invite their friends over to watch." About Evolve Media, LLC Evolve Media is a premium publisher of leading enthusiast destinations for influential men and women. Leveraging proprietary advertising and publishing technologies, as well as hundreds of talented content professionals, Evolve Media offers premium and engaging content to its readers, while offering marketers the tools needed to execute custom, content-led marketing solutions that reach its audience of over 78 million people globally each month.

Read More

Applications

Cineverse Reaches Agreement to Integrate Whip Media's Content Partner Payments Platform for FAST, AVOD, SVOD and EST into Matchpoint Insights

Cineverse Corp | September 26, 2023

Cineverse Corp., a global streaming technology and entertainment company with one of the world's largest portfolios of streaming channels and content libraries, announced today a partnership with Whip Media, the leading enterprise software platform and data provider to the world's largest entertainment organizations. Using its Content Value Management (CVM) software platform, Whip Media will help Cineverse automate and more efficiently manage content partner royalty payments for its expansive distribution network across Cineverse direct and third-party platforms. Cineverse distributes content from hundreds of content providers through its FAST/AVOD channels, SVOD service, TVOD/EST distribution and physical home entertainment products. The rapid growth of Cineverse required a new system to scale and efficiently handle financial activities for the high volume of content partner contracts and licenses, such as royalty calculations, revenue statement generation and issuance of payment to partners on a monthly and quarterly basis. Currently, Cineverse must create over 1,700 complex financial statements per quarter which require significant manual effort to manage. Cineverse will leverage the CVM Platform for Content Partner Payments to capture all contractual financial terms for each content provider, and ingest performance and revenue data from Matchpoint Insights – part of Cineverse's proprietary suite of streaming technology products. By consolidating sales, performance, and revenue data, CVM can automate the calculation of royalties due to each provider and accurately generate royalty statements. What has historically been a manual process will be transformed into a highly scalable solution that radically reduces costs, increases efficiency, and improves accuracy. "We're excited to partner with Cineverse, an entertainment technology and streaming trailblazer that has created an innovative solution that eliminates the expensive, time-consuming manual process required for preparing film and television assets for broad global distribution," said Saj Jayasinghe, Whip Media's EVP of Global Revenue. "Our partnership will allow Cineverse to optimize their workflow and automate their digital supply chain by utilizing our platform to streamline their financial reconciliation process and extend automation to a much higher level on the financial side." "Our partnership with Whip Media is critical as it helps fill a gap in our technology stack. We feel that developing financial-based software is not our core competency so partnering with Whip Media and leveraging their best-in-class technology allows us to address a significant unmet need in the rapidly growing streaming marketplace: an end-to-end solution from content ingestion and delivery all the way to reporting and payment," said Tony Huidor, Chief Operating Officer & Chief Technology Officer at Cineverse. "This comes at a time when the legacy entertainment industry desperately needs to shift towards video-on-demand and FAST services, giving us the ability to scale quickly via automation and pave the way via an all-in-one solution." About Whip Media Whip Media is reimagining content licensing to create a smarter, more connected entertainment ecosystem. We help the world's leading entertainment organizations succeed in today's high-volume, high-velocity global content environment with a market leading cloud software platform that combines unique, actionable insights with scalable, connected workflows for licensing, content planning and financial operations. About Cineverse Cineverse is a global streaming technology and entertainment company with one of the world's largest portfolios of streaming channels and content libraries, all powered by its advanced, proprietary technology platform. Cineverse currently features enthusiast brands for subscription video on demand (SVOD), advertising-based video on demand (AVOD) and free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels. Cineverse entertains consumers around the globe by providing premium feature film and television series, enthusiast streaming channels and technology services to some of the world's largest media, retail, and technology companies.

Read More

Solutions

IMAX and Prime Focus Technologies (PFT) expand strategic relationship into the streaming ecosystem

Media and Entertainment | September 14, 2023

Entertainment technology industry leader IMAX Corporation® (NYSE: IMAX) and PFT, the creator of AI-powered technology solutions for the Media and Entertainment (M&E) industry, today announced plans to expand their strategic relationship beyond theatrical and into the streaming ecosystem. Under the arrangement, IMAX will expand access to its Stream Smart™ technology to PFT customers across Europe, Asia, and Australia. The expanded partnership will dramatically increase the global availability of Stream Smart™, which helps streaming platforms deliver maximum picture quality while significantly reducing distribution and storage costs. "We are thrilled to deepen our partnership with IMAX, an industry trailblazer with a remarkable legacy of revolutionizing the global entertainment industry," said Ramki Sankaranarayanan, Global CEO of PFT. "For over a decade, CLEAR®, our flagship product, has spearheaded digital packaging and delivery services for prominent streaming platforms worldwide. CLEAR® & Stream Smart will help optimize our customers' encoding pipeline, so they deliver better streaming quality while optimizing CDN & storage costs." "Many of Hollywood's biggest streaming platforms use Stream Smart™ to ensure quality and reduce costs, and we're excited to work with our partners at PFT to extend the reach of our technologies throughout key markets in Europe, Asia, and Australia," said Vikram Arumilli, General Manager of Streaming and Consumer Technology at IMAX. "Our suite of streaming technology products, including Stream Smart™, provides a best-in-class service for direct-to-consumer broadcast and streaming companies, and PFT's' ability to leverage this for their customers is a win-win for both organizations." PFT and its parent company, DNEG, are industry leaders providing a full suite of technology and creative solutions, including IMAX post-production and 3D mastering. IMAX and DNEG joined forces in 2022 for post-production, which included Indian films like Jawan, Pathaan, and RRR. This extended partnership will build upon the established theatrical relationship between IMAX and DNEG to develop a comprehensive video optimization solution. Stream Smart™ is an enterprise software product designed to deliver the best image quality and optimize delivery to unlock cost savings. This product was built from cutting-edge scientific advancements, state-of-the-art engineering, trusted studio relationships, and rooted in a real-world at-scale Emmy®-winning collaboration with Disney Streaming Services and SSIMWAVE. Stream Smart™ will be the centerpiece of the IMAX showcase at IBC 2023. Sign up to meet with PFT and IMAX Streaming & Consumer Technology group at IBC: About IMAX Corporation IMAX, an innovator in entertainment technology, combines proprietary software, architecture, and equipment to create experiences that take you beyond the edge of your seat to a world you've never imagined. Top filmmakers and studios are utilizing IMAX systems to connect with audiences in extraordinary ways, making IMAX's network among the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event films around the globe. IMAX is headquartered in New York, Toronto, and Los Angeles, with additional offices in London, Dublin, Tokyo, and Shanghai. As of June 30, 2023, there were 1,718 IMAX systems (1,638 commercial multiplexes, 12 commercial destinations, 68 institutional) operating in 87 countries and territories. Shares of IMAX China Holding, Inc., a subsidiary of IMAX Corporation, trade on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code "1970." About Prime Focus Technologies Prime Focus Technologies (PFT) is the creator of CLEAR® and CLEAR® AI. It offers streaming platforms, studios, and broadcasters transformational AI-led technology and media services powered by the cloud that help them lower their Total Cost of Operations (TCOP) by automating their content supply chain. PFT works with major companies like Walt Disney-owned Star TV, Channel 4, ITV, Sinclair Broadcast Group, A&E Networks, Warner Media, PBS, CBS Television Studios, 20th Century Fox Television Studios, Lionsgate, Showtime, HBO, NBCU, TERN International, Disney+ Hotstar, BCCI, Indian Premier League and more. About DNEG DNEG (www.dneg.com) is a world-leading visual entertainment services company for the creation of feature film, television, and multiplatform content, with worldwide offices and studios across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. DNEG's critically acclaimed work has earned the company seven Academy Awards® for Best Visual Effects and numerous BAFTA and Primetime EMMY® Awards for its high-quality VFX work. Current and upcoming DNEG projects on behalf of its Hollywood and global studio and production company partners include Spy Kids Armageddon (September 2023), No One Will Save You (September 2023), The Gilded Age S2 (October 2023), Nyad (November 2023), Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (December 2023), Lift (January 2024), Dune: Part Two (March 2024), Mickey 17 (March 2024), Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (April 2024), Garfield (May 2024), Borderlands (August 2024), Furiosa (2024), That Christmas, Coyote vs. Acme, The Gorge, and Animal Friends.

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