93% want a single hub to manage all subscriptions including video, music, gaming, sport, and more

The boom in the subscriptions economy is threatening to overwhelm consumers across India and Southeast Asia, according to a new survey. Well over three quarters (81%) of subscription users believe there are now “too many” subscription services available. As a result, 93% now demand a unified platform to administer all of their subscriptions. Yet, despite many feeling the subscription fatigue, 81% say they would sign up for more subscriptions if they were consolidated through a centralized content hub.

That’s according to new research from Bango, based on a survey of over 6,000+ consumers currently paying for subscription services across India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Subscription overload

According to the data, 86% of consumers have 2+ subscriptions and 15% have more than 6. These include services ranging from streaming to food delivery, music to sport, and everything in between.

With so many subscriptions to manage, each on separate platforms, it’s no surprise that consumers are frustrated by the administrative nightmare.

Many are losing track of their current subscriptions, leading to unnecessary costs. Nearly half (44%) say that they’ve kept paying for subscriptions they forgot were still active, while a third (32%) say they currently pay for a subscription service that they ‘never use’.

Too many subscriptions costs consumers both their money and patience. It also sours their opinions on subscription providers generally.

One hub, seamlessly delivered

Though most do say there are too many subscription services, Bango’s study shows that consumers don’t want fewer choices. They simply want a more seamless experience.

According to the data, a large majority of consumers (93%) want all of their subscriptions to be managed through a ‘Super Bundling’ content hub. As defined by Juniper Research, Super Bundling consists of a single payment to a service aggregator — such as a telco — for multiple subscriptions such as streaming services, which are delivered through a single online subscriptions hub.

For subscribers in Asia, the ideal content hub would provide:

1. Discounts in subscription prices (58%)
2. Access to a wide variety of services in one place (56%)
3. The ability to pay multiple subscriptions at once (51%)

The majority of consumers (89%) would spend more time using their subscription services if a content hub was available. 91% also believe that having all of their subscriptions in one place would help them manage their household expenses.

As Anil Malhotra, Co-founder at Bango explains, “Managing multiple subscriptions is a headache for users. They don’t want less choice – just less admin. We should focus on building all-in-one solutions that can offer consumers flexibility on billing, a wider variety of choices, and a great user experience. That’s what they really want.”

A new frontier of bundling, led by telcos

When it comes to building this solution, the survey reveals that local mobile network operators may be the key to unlocking Super Bundling. For a majority of consumers in Asia (81%), telcos are the most trusted provider for a centralized content hub. They’re the logical go-to, as two thirds (67%) of consumers already have subscription services included in their phone plan.

The data also shows that Super Bundling content hubs would boost consumer loyalty, with 95% saying they would be more loyal to the brands that provided them. 66% would even leave their current telco provider if this service became available elsewhere, creating significant value for any telco able to capture this opportunity.

In the US and Australia, telcos like Verizon and Optus have already launched ‘Super Bundling’ content hubs, offering centralized hubs for streaming, music, gaming, and more through their +play and SubHub platforms, respectively.

Companies like Bango specialize in the technology behind Super Bundling, ensuring a streamlined experience for consumers, content providers and telcos alike. As Malhotra explains, “Bango’s technology can be thought of as a ‘Digital Vending Machine’ for subscriptions. It’s stocked with every subscription you can think of. Telcos, banks, and any other large business can tap into it, and load it with the subscriptions their customers want. Then they can offer the best deals and discounts as part of a regular monthly bill.”

Recognized innovator will contribute to WEF’s Centre for Cybersecurity’s initiative to address systemic challenges and build cyber resilience.

Metabase Q,a leading all-in-one cybersecurity solution, today announced it has joined the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Innovators Community. The Global Innovators Community is an invitation-only group of the world’s most promising start-ups and scale-ups that are at the forefront of ethical technological and business model innovation.

The World Economic Forum provides the Global Innovators Community with a platform to engage with public- and private-sector leaders. Companies who are invited to become Global Innovators will engage with relevant Forum platforms to help define the global agenda on key issues. By contributing to the Centre for Cybersecurity platform, Metabase Q and other partners are leading the global response to overcome the current crisis and build future resiliency.

“We are pleased to have Metabase Q join the Global Innovators Community, and we look forward to the team’s contributions to the Centre of Cybersecurity,” said Verene Kuhn, Global Innovators Community Head, World Economic Forum. “Metabase Q will be engaging in several workstreams that look to enhance cyber resilience globally.”

“Today's cyber threats know no boundaries; they are global, relentless, and ever-evolving. In the face of such ubiquitous challenges, the defense too must be worldwide,” said Mauricio Benavides, CEO and Co-founder of Metabase Q. “Joining the World Economic Forum’s Global Innovators Community underscores our commitment at Metabase Q to fostering a united, global defense against these digital adversaries. Together, we can pave the way for a more secure and resilient digital future for all.”

The World Economic Forum is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business, cultural, and other leaders of society to shape global, regional, and industry agendas. Established in 1971 as a nonprofit foundation and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, it is independent, impartial, and not tied to any special interests.

cPanel, the hosting management platform of choice, has recently introduced Manage Team, a new feature that enables account owners to create sub-accounts and delegate access to specific features and functions. This much-anticipated feature has been highly requested by its user community and is now available to all cPanel users free of charge.

"Team Manager has been our most requested feature," states Jesse Asklund, Chief Experience Officer at cPanel. "With this feature, we're enabling seamless collaboration and administrative task delegation, allowing site owners to give access to associates, developers, and anyone else needing access to a cPanel account without sharing the primary account credentials."

As more small businesses establish their web presences, the need for a secure means of delegating administrative tasks within cPanel has arisen.

Manage Team solves this by allowing license owners to create sub-accounts with access to specific features, such as website development, database management, email administration, and more, without sharing credentials between users. Not only does this lower support costs and increase security, but searchable audit logs track the actions of each sub-user, and these accounts can even be set to auto expire on a specified date.

New Selling Opportunities for Shared Hosting Providers

Shared hosting providers can now market and sell delegated accounts as part of their offerings, which do not count towards the licensing costs for cPanel, adding substantial value. Account owners can create sub-accounts of different team sizes, including 3-member small teams, 5-member standard teams, and 7-member large teams, offering them at various price points.

Additionally, this feature will introduce new users to the cPanel platform as they enter as team members, which can drive future demand for their own cPanel accounts.

Strengthening Control and Security

In terms of security, cPanel has always remained at the forefront of industry standards. With Manage Team, account owners can require Two-factor Authentication for all users, and the root administrator and/or reseller can limit the number of sub-user accounts that a cPanel account can have.

To enable the Manage Team interface for a cPanel account, users must select the Manage Team feature from the menu in WHM's Feature Manager interface (WHM » Home » Packages » Feature Manager).

With the launch of Manage Team, cPanel account owners now have complete control over their accounts, allowing them to easily delegate access to team members and third-party providers while ensuring safety.

A Highly Anticipated Feature

As a direct response to user requests, the release of the Manage Team feature represents a significant milestone for cPanel. The platform now offers the ability to create user accounts for smooth collaboration within teams, eliminating security concerns related to sharing credentials.

Leading Digital Automation Tool Expands its Reach, Empowering Advertisers and Agencies to Streamline Pinterest Campaigns

Shirofune, the leading digital advertising automation management tool, today announced that it has added Pinterest to its roster of platforms, which include Facebook, Instagram, Microsoft Advertising, TikTok and X (formerly known as Twitter). Advertisers and agencies can now manage Pinterest ad spend within one centralized platform, easily manage bidding and budgeting, and reap consolidated performance data.

The popularity of Pinterest, especially among its 76.2% female audience worldwide, continues to rise. According to Statista, the image-based social media platform had 463 million monthly active users by the first quarter of 2023; its annual revenues were $2.8 billion in 2022, up nearly sixfold from $473 million in 2017.

Using human intelligence rather than AI, with algorithms hard coded and audited daily by a team of experts, Shirofune has developed an automated tool to simplify the management of digital advertising. Through performance indicators such as the number of clicks, number of conversions and revenue, Shirofune manages a monthly budget across all desired platforms, including Pinterest. Its system automatically adjusts daily budget and Target CPA/ROAS informed by performance analysis through integration with measurement tools like Google Analytics and ecommerce platforms like Shopify.

The Pinterest launch marks Shirofune’s ninth major advertising platform integration. “With its rising use in the image-sharing community, Pinterest remains a robust platform for advertising,” said Shirofune Founder and CEO Mitsunaga Kikuchi. “We are excited to expand Shirofune as an omnichannel tool that saves significant time and money in reaching targeted audiences.”

Shirofune launched in North America this February after becoming the #1 digital automated advertising management tool in Japan, where it has captured a 91% market share and is used by leading advertisers and agencies including Rakuten and Dentsu, saving them more than 50% of work hours.

Comcast Corporation today announced it has named Rocky Gupta as Executive Vice President and Treasurer of the company. He joins Comcast from General Motors where he recently led its treasury and finance organizations.

As Comcast’s Treasurer, Mr. Gupta will oversee the company’s relationships with financial institutions across its Connectivity & Platforms and Content & Experiences businesses and manage its capital allocation, capital formation, credit-related matters, and investment management activities. He will report to Jason S. Armstrong, Chief Financial Officer of Comcast Corporation, upon his arrival at Comcast later this month.

“Rocky is an outstanding financial executive and I’m excited to have him lead our exceptional treasury team,” said Mr. Armstrong. “He has a strong track record of financial excellence and leadership domestically and globally and I look forward to him bringing his outstanding acumen, talent, and expertise to Comcast.”

During his career at General Motors, Mr. Gupta held several financial leadership positions for the company, including Investor Relations, CEO and Chief Investment Officer of GM Asset Management, CFO and General Manager of Southeast Asian Operations, and multiple corporate development roles through GM Finance where he led many company acquisitions and divestitures. He also worked directly on GM motor vehicles early in his career while serving as an Engineer.

Mr. Gupta earned an M.B.A. in Finance, Management, and Strategy and a M.S. in Manufacturing Systems Engineering from Stanford University. He also holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Kettering University.

Former president of BlackRock, former CEO of NHSX, and former Director of GCHQ bring wealth of industry experience from finance, healthcare, and national security

Quantexa, the global leader in Decision Intelligence (DI) solutions for the private and public sectors, announced today that it has appointed three industry luminaries to its Advisory Board. These hires include Ralph Schlosstein, former CEO of Evercore and former President of BlackRock, Matthew Gould, former CEO of NHSX, and Sir Jeremy Fleming, Former Director of GCHQ. These distinguished leaders bring a wealth of expertise in finance, healthcare, and national security to Quantexa.

The expansion of Quantexa’s Advisory Board comes at a pivotal time for the organization, following the completion of a $129 million Series E funding round, led by GIC, where Quantexa joined an elite group of UK tech companies reaching breakout unicorn status. It was also announced this year that Quantexa will invest over $155M in the global AI industry over the next three years to help clients advance the use of AI to protect, optimize, and grow their organizations. By 2027, Quantexa’s total global investment in AI will reach more than $250M.

Ralph Schlosstein, former CEO of Evercore and former President of BlackRock, brings decades of experience in investment banking to Quantexa’s Advisory Board. His distinguished career includes playing a strategic role in helping the world’s largest asset management firm go public. Ralph’s financial acumen will play a pivotal role in shaping corporate strategy initiatives.

Matthew Gould, former CEO of NHSX, joins Quantexa’s Advisory Board, after serving as the British ambassador to Israel between 2010 and 2015, where Gould helped to launch the UK-Israel Technologies Hub – an initiative run in Tel Aviv to forge technology partnerships between UK and Israeli companies. More recently, Matthew leveraged his extensive background in healthcare to play a pivotal role in advising NHS on initiatives throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. At NHSX, Gould has been responsible for harnessing the power of data and technology to improve healthcare delivery. Matthew’s deep expertise will help Quantexa identify the economies and industries for strategic focus and make decisions on commercial strategy.

Sir Jeremy Fleming, Former Director of GCHQ, and former Deputy Head of MI5, joins the Advisory Board with more than 30 years of experience in intelligence and technology. His extensive background includes developing the National Cyber Security Centre, where he strived to make the UK the safest place to live and do business online. With a passion for making technology use in government more transparent, Sir Fleming will enhance Quantexa's capabilities in addressing emerging threats and opportunities.

"We are pleased to welcome Ralph Schlosstein, Matthew Gould, and Sir Jeremy Fleming to our Advisory Board," said Vishal Marria, CEO of Quantexa. "Their collective expertise in finance, healthcare, and national security will be invaluable as we continue to develop cutting-edge decision intelligence solutions that address the evolving needs of the market."

“Quantexa’s AI-enabled technology allows its customers to protect, optimize, and grow their organizations with efficiency and transparency,” said Ralph Schlosstein, former CEO of Evercore and former President of BlackRock. “I believe Quantexa is well-positioned to capture the opportunities ahead and increase its share of the emerging Decision Intelligence category. I am looking forward to supporting the executive team as they work to accelerate their organic and inorganic growth strategy.”

"It’s an exciting time for me to be joining Quantexa’s Advisory Board, at this critical stage of growth for the company," said Matthew Gould. "Quantexa's innovative approach to helping customers in the private and public sectors make data their most valuable utility is revolutionizing decision making across multiple industries. I look forward to working alongside the talented team at Quantexa to connect data and drive better outcomes for organizations.”

Sir Jeremy Fleming, Former Director of GCHQ commented “I’m thrilled to be part of a company at the forefront of AI innovation. I look forward to combining my experience with Quantexa’s impressive capabilities, which will continue to shape how their customers use data to protect businesses and citizens.”

The partnership will fast-track the modernization of IT infrastructures and adoption of real-time payments ahead of the EU's mandatory transition to instant credit transfers

Finastra, a global provider of financial software applications and marketplaces, today announced its extended partnership with Corvallis, Tinexta Group, a leading IT services provider in the Italian financial services sector, to support Italian banks with their payment transformation journeys. The collaboration extends the scope from Finastra's SaaS digital banking solution, Essence, to include Finastra Payments To Go, an end-to-end SaaS payment processing solution, and Global PAYplus, a functionally-rich payment hub solution. By facilitating SEPA and international payments, Italian banks can comply with the upcoming European instant payments regulation and modernize outdated and complex IT infrastructures.

"Our partnership supports the imminent entry into force of the European regulation on instant bank transfers in euros, which will make instant payments mandatory without additional costs," said Giampietro Vavassori, Business Solution Director at Corvallis. "This requires a radical overhaul of current, often temporary solutions that are not suited to support the expected increase in instant payments transfers, which will gradually replace ordinary transfers. As payments have evolved, the introduction of additional application modules and integration layers have led to complex, layered and difficult to manage architectures. Finastra's payments solutions help to simplify this complexity by eliminating existing legacy payments silos, streamlining processes and enabling access to new market opportunities."

Payments To Go is an end-to-end SaaS payment processing solution that enables banks to fast-track their instant payments services rollout and deliver flexible digital payment offerings faster and more efficiently. Global PAYplus offers a broad suite of payments services spanning high-value, mass and real-time payments in a single solution, based on microservices and an ISO 20022 native data model. Corvallis has extensive implementation expertise and offers complementary solutions, such as for anti-money laundering (AML), payment and settlement and fraud management.

"Extending our partnership with Corvallis demonstrates our mutual commitment to equipping Italian banks with the right tools to embrace the modern age," said Merten Slominsky, Managing Director EMEA, Payments at Finastra. "With our evergreen solutions that enable seamless integrations with third party services through APIs, Corvallis' customers can pursue ongoing payments innovation and adapt quickly to new regulatory and customer demands. The collaboration combines technological innovation with extensive industry and regional expertise, driven by a common vision of enabling the future of payments."

Utherverse brings almost 20 years of operational experience, patents and proprietary technology, millions of users and hyper-realistic experiences to the metaverse

Utherverse, one of the largest metaverse platforms in the world, has begun taking reservations for its $1.235 million equity crowdfunding campaign with Republic, a leading investment platform that provides access to startup, real estate, crypto and gaming investments for both retail and accredited investors.

People interested in participating in the crowdfund can get more information and reserve a spot at https://republic.com/utherverse. Investors will be notified when the crowdfund goes live. The minimum investment is $150.

“Utherverse is uniquely poised to truly deliver on and realize the full potential of the metaverse,” said Brian Shuster, founder and CEO of Utherverse. “From hyper-realistic user experiences and AI-driven innovations to e-commerce, B2B and B2C marketing and revenue opportunities, we are establishing a platform that will be a dominant force in the virtual world.”

Investment considerations include:

• Utherverse is already the world's most successful metaverse platform based on number of users.

• The current generation of the Utherverse platform was successfully franchised in 17 countries, creating unprecedented opportunities for the Web3 version.

• As one of the first virtual worlds, Utherverse has almost 20 years of operational history which is far beyond that of any competitor.

• The upcoming beta launch of the Utherverse Web3 platform is already receiving widespread attention with the closed beta almost at capacity.

• More than 80 patents have been issued for the company's technology, including many Internet-enabling technologies and intellectual property that addresses a variety of needs within metaverse platforms, ranging from the physics of movement and immersive displays to physical interaction between users and animation control.

• Utherverse features the proprietary Xaeon Web3 browser and metaverse search engine that will let users quickly search millions of metaverse worlds, landmark their favorite places and teleport directly to events and locations.

• fNFTs (functional NFTs), dynamic tokens that represent goods with utility that have function within Utherverse, such as apparel, living spaces and event tickets.

• Utherverse has offered the first and second pre-sale rounds of the Uther Coin (UTHX) through Nexus Ecosystems as part of the token’s initial decentralized offering (IDO). The Uther Coin will be the in-house currency for all metaverses on the Utherverse platform.

In addition, Utherverse is offering metaverse-as-a-service as well as an interoperable metaverse platform. This includes tools and technologies that will enable third parties to create and operate their own virtual worlds, creators to design digital assets and businesses to offer a wide range of products and services in a wide range of industries.

Bonus perks for different levels of crowdfund investment include whitelist for early beta access, VIP access, varying quantities of UtherTokens, fNFT apartments and penthouses, and investor and founder titles.

Utherverse will launch its closed beta of the next generation version of the platform Sept. 26. The closed beta will provide a preview of its Web3 capabilities as well as test and continue the final build-out of the next generation of the popular platform. Users will be able to claim their Utherverse usernames and begin to experience the Web3 version of the platform with experiences such as such as outdoor concerts, rooftop dance clubs with live DJs, film and movie screenings, shopping, art galleries and much more. In addition, users will be able to interact with each other in a variety of settings, as well as buy and sell virtual goods and participate in other e-commerce opportunities.