Business

Amazon Bets Big on Europe as it Takes on Netflix

Published

6 years ago

October 3, 2018

Eric

Amazon is firing a new salvo in its global battle with Netflix for the booming online streaming market — and it features Julia Roberts and descendants of Russia’s tsars.

The US internet shopping leader is investing an estimated $4.5 billion (4.0 billion euros) in streaming content through its Amazon Prime Video service this year.

That figure is likely to grow further as it tries to catch up to the nearly $8 billion now being ploughed annually into content by industry pioneer Netflix.

A part of Amazon’s strategy is a focus on Europe — still more reliant on traditional TV than the United States — as it seeks to build on a subscription base that has already reached 100 million people in 200 countries.

It is so important for us that we create a global home for talent,” she said. “It’s about the world and really starting with European territories.”

Prime Video Europe vice president Jay Marine added that streaming was not a winner-take-all market because the growth trend seemed unlikely to sputter any time soon.

“There will be multiple winners. Customers will use multiple services,” said Marine.

– ‘Budgets matching aspirations’ –

The new Amazon series lineup includes “Mad Men” creator Matthew Weiner’s “The Romanoffs” — an anthology about people who think they are descendants of the last Russian tsar.

Roberts brings her star power to a 10-episode psychological thriller called “Good Omens”.

It is an apocalyptic tale that marches through the centuries and had previously been seen as too ambitious and costly for a screen adaptation.

Good Omens” novel co-author Neil Gaiman told AFP that co-productions between traditional broadcasters and online platforms were opening up new opportunities.

Amazon teamed up with the BBC for the series as it was preparing to go global last December.

“We’re incredibly lucky right now. We are in a golden age of television,” Gaiman told AFP while filming one of the episodes in London in November.

“We’re in a place where our budget can match our aspirations”.

Briton Michael Sheen plays an angel in the series and feels like he is in the middle of something exciting — and very big.

“Everyone’s going… ‘What’s the next thing to watch?’ So there’s clearly an appetite for it, which is why so many things are being made and the material is really good, and there’s budget for it,” he told AFP.

Business

FirstBank Appoints New MD/CEO, Alebiosu

Published

1 day ago

April 22, 2024

Eric

First Bank of Nigeria has appointed Olusegun Alebiosu as its new Managing Director with effect from April 2024.

The Bank stated this in a release signed by its acting company secretary Adewale Arogundade.

Alebiosu takes from Adesola Adeduntan, who resigned abruptly on Saturday with eight months left to complete his tenure in December 2024.

The release stated that “following the resignation of the managing director/CEO of FirstBank, Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, the Board of Directors has appointed Olusegun Alebiosu as the acting CEO of the 130-year-old institution.

“The appointment takes effect immediately and is subject to the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria.”

The release stated that Alebiosu was until this appointment the executive director, chief risk officer and executive compliance officer since January 2022. Prior to that, he was the Group executive/ chief risk officer, a position he held since 2016.

“Alebiosu brings to the executive management of FirstBank over 28 years’ experience in the banking and financial services industry with cross-functional exposure to Credit risk management, Financial planning and control, Credit and marketing, Trade, Corporate and commercial banking, Agriculture financing, Oil and Gas, Transportation (including Aviation and Shipping) and Project financing.”

It added that the new acting MD/CEO commenced his professional career in 1991 with Oceanic Bank Plc (now EcoBank) and prior to joining FirstBank in 2016 served as Chief Risk Officer at Coronation Merchant Bank Limited, Chief Credit Risk Officer at African Development Bank Group and Group Head, Credit Policy & Deputy Chief Credit Risk Officer at United Bank for Africa Plc.

“He is an alumnus of Harvard School of Government and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Relations and Personnel Management. He also obtained a Master’s degree in International Law and Diplomacy from the University of Lagos and holds a Master’s degree in Development Studies from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

“He is a member of various professional bodies namely, Fellow, Institute of Chartered Accountants (FCA), Associate, Nigeria Institute of Management (ANIM), Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) and Member, Nigeria Institute of International Affairs.”

Business

Again, Naira Slumps Against Dollar, Trades at N1,169/$1 in Official Window

Published

3 days ago

April 20, 2024

Eric

The Naira, on Friday, slumped for the second consecutive day against the American dollar at the official window trading at N1,169/$1, according to data from the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM).

At the end of trading on Friday, the Naira lost N15 against the dollar when compared to the previous exchange rate of N1,154/$1 on Thursday, April 18, 2024.

The intra-day high and low recorded during the day were N1,236/$1 and N1,021/$1 respectively, representing a lean spread of N215/$1.

Similarly, the Naira slumped against the dollar at the parallel market for the second consecutive day to trade at N1,150/$1 representing a loss of N50 when compared to the N1,100/$1 it traded the previous day.

The British Pound also slumped against the Naira by N50 to trade at N1,500/£1 as against the previous trading price of N1,450/£1 representing a loss of N50 for the local currency,

The Canadian dollar however closed flat against the Naira to trade at N1,000/CA$1 same as the previous trading day rate of N1,000/ CA$1.

The Euro also slumped against the Naira to trade at N1, 280/€1 as against the rate of N1,200/€1 the previous trading rate indicating a gain of N80 in the European currency.

Business

Glo Launches New Internet Solution Products for Homes, Businesses

Published

2 weeks ago

April 8, 2024

Eric

Two new products, which provide internet connectivity solutions specially designed for Residential and SME commercial customers, have been unveiled by digital solutions company, Globacom.

The products, Fibre to the Home (FTTH) and Fibre to the Business (FTTB) were packaged for Glo customers to enjoy reliable and high speed internet through linked fibre services.

Globacom said in a statement in Lagos “With these services, businesses and homes can access dedicated internet speeds of up to 1GBps, allowing unlimited internet usages for seamless video calls, video and music streaming and a whole lot of other dedicated usages to promote business success and equally provide endless entertainment for homes”.

It explained that the new product comes with a unique opportunity for “Residential Estates, High Rise Apartments, Commercial SME Estates to enjoy dedicated high speed internet in their cluster”.

These services, according to Globacom, give exceptional experience and unmatched speed for users at home or in offices and are provided through hi-speed fibre – unlike copper which was being used in the past.

Positioning itself as the premier provider of innovative solutions for businesses of all sizes, Globacom assured customers of the best value for money with the new offerings, adding that users who sign on for these services will also enjoy fully dedicated bandwidth.

“We are committed to delivering the most cost-effective data connectivity experience for homes and businesses in addition to providing dedicated and reliable services.” Globacom concluded.