Here’s a look at STARZPLAY’s round-up of incredible wildlife documentaries which celebrate the wonders of the animal kingdom:

Crikey it’s the Irwins

The members of the world-famous Irwin family deal with various challenges and struggles at the Australia Zoo as they follow their patriarch's footsteps in taking care of animals. Watch the trailer here.

The Bronx Zoo

A look at daily life in the Bronx Zoo, documenting the day-to-day operations that provide quality care for animals whilst educating the public on wildlife and conservation. Watch the trailer here.

Surviving Joe Exotic

Joe Exotic gives one of his last interviews before his arrest. Ex-employees reveal the truth about his infamous G.W. Zoo and there’s a look at the rescue of some of its big cats. Watch the trailer here.

Wildest Middle East

This documentary features the forests, deserts, mountains, rivers, seas, flora and fauna in Middle Eastern countries such as Turkey, Egypt, Arabia and Jordan. Watch the trailer here.

Lions of Sabi Sands

South Africa's legendary Mapogo lion coalition and their violent struggle for power is a shocking tale of ambition and betrayal. For lions, there is no leadership without enemies. Watch the trailer here.

Viewers in the MENA region can enjoy these amazing shows from the comfort and safety of their homes via discovery+ on STARZPLAY, available on the platform as an add-on channel.

New York Festivals® 2021 AME Awards® announced the addition of 8 prominent executives that have joined the AME Advisory Council.

The 18-member Advisory Council, formed in 2019, is a brain trust of creative and strategic industry leaders representing 5 continents. They generously provide the competition with ongoing knowledge of emerging trends and critical industry insights. The Council’s participation allows AME to be more responsive to changes and demands within the advertising/marketing sphere and their astute advice and combined industry expertise ensure continued wise council and a global perspective.

“All of us at AME are extremely grateful that this visionary panel dedicated to results-driven work will share their knowledge and expertise with the AME Awards,” said Gayle Seminara Mandel, Executive Director, AME Awards. “As leaders at the apex of the industry, their perspective provides valuable insights, ideas for new competition categories reflective of the work produced today, recommendations for fair and diverse jury members, and opportunities for AME to champion effectiveness around the globe.”

2021 Additions to the AME Awards Advisory Council

·         Caio Barsotti, President, CENP Brazil

·         Saul Betmead de Chasteigner, Chief Marketing Officer, United Nations World Food Programme Italy

·         Pully Chau, Group CEO/Chairman Greater China, Cheil China

·         Gordon Euchler, Head of Planning, BBDO Germany

·         Balendran Kandeban, Founder & CEO, Miami Ad School - Sri Lanka and Maldives / Academics Group, Sri Lanka

·         Robin Shapiro, Chief Executive Officer, TBWA\World Health USA

·         Guy Swimer, Executive Creative Director, McCann Health London

·         Amy Winger, Global Client Lead/Intel, VMLY&R USA

To view all the members of the AME Awards Advisory Council visit: HERE.

“There is nothing more powerful than an idea that drives disruptive growth. That’s why I am thrilled to join the AME Advisory Council. I look forward to celebrating the best of the brave, campaigns that are driving exceptional growth.” –Robin Shapiro, CEO, TBWA\WorldHealth.

“As health continues to produce inspirational thinking and new ways to reach our audiences, it’s vital we find ways to track its effectiveness; I’m delighted to be part of the AME’s Advisory Council to offer a perspective on how breakthrough ideas in health can lead to genuine results.”–Guy Swimer, Executive Creative Director, McCann WorldHealth London

“Branding & marketing plays a major role in shaping the global economy: in creating jobs, in facilitating brands and belief, in building hopes; and transcending legacies. I wish to share our voice of Asia and China by joining the AME Awards Advisory Council. A practical dream leveraging my decades of experiences.” –Pully Chau, Group CEO/Chairman Greater China, Cheil China 

“Every day we wake up and start working to find ways to get more and better results and to achieve effectiveness to all and each communication action. We love to compete, so…be recognized, win an award, be a creative reference, become an effectiveness case study…Yes, it’s worth it! I’m proud to be part of it, and excited to learn with all the talent around the table at the AME Awards Advisory Council.” –Caio Barsotti, President, CENP Brazil. 

“The AME awards are all about proving the worth of advertising and marketing. Joining the Advisory Council means I can hopefully help shape that most important conversation.” –Saul Betmead de Chasteigner, Chief Marketing Officer, United Nations World Food Programme

“Making a big creative idea that delivers big outcomes is a beautiful thing that takes the powers of foresight, ingenuity, and bravery. I’m excited to join with my colleagues on the AME Advisory Council and look forward to celebrating ideas and teams that deliver the goods.” –Amy Winger, Global Client Lead/Intel, VMLY&R USA

“The intersection of creativity and economic success is what makes our industry unique. It is what advertising does at its best, but this has clearly a bigger role to play in the whole of the business world. Whoever gets this right is the envy of consultancies, competitors, and clients. This is worth celebrating, and this is what the AME does. I would love to make my little contribution to keep that spirit and push it into the future.” –Gordon Euchler, Head of Planning, BBDO Germany

“Delighted to be part of the New York Festival AME Award’s Advisory Council and work with innovative, visionary, and influential leaders around the world. NYF AME Awards is a world-wide platform that encourages and celebrates effectiveness in the ever-changing world of advertising and brand building – A great influencer for ideas and campaigns to make this world a better place. And we all have a collective responsibility to make that happen!” –Balendran Kandeban, Founder & CEO, Miami Ad School - Sri Lanka and Maldives / Academics Group, Sri Lanka

“AME’s Advisory Council is represented by both agency, brand, organizational, and educational leaders who together ensure AME’s stature within the global community as a competition that showcases the most creative and measurable effective campaigns emanating from around the globe,” added Seminara Mandel.

The AME Awards deadline  to enter is April 16th, 2021. 

Opening Massive Market Opportunities For Advertising 

New Mobile Streaming Report by Adjust finds 52.5% of consumers worldwide have used smartphones to stream more video content since the outbreak COVID-19 

Over The Top (OTT) streaming has exploded during the global pandemic, according to a new report released today by global app marketing analytics platform Adjust, further demonstrating a fundamental shift in consumption patterns toward mobile. Busting the myth that the majority of mobile streaming takes place on commutes, 84% of consumers across the countries surveyed have used their smartphones to stream the same amount or even more content since the coronavirus outbreak.  

On average, over half of consumers surveyed (52.5%) said they are streaming more video content since lockdown. Only 12% of consumers are streaming less — which means four times more consumers are mobile streaming.  

Drawing on consumer research from 8,000 respondents across the U.S., the U.K., Germany, Turkey, Japan, Singapore, Korea, and China, The Mobile Streaming 2021 Report also finds strong streaming habits across generations in mobile-first countries. In total, nearly 90% of users aged 55 and older in China (89.8%) and Turkey (88.9%) say they stream via their phone every day or at least more than once a week. 

“This drastic shift to routine mobile streaming around the world and across generations has created massive advertising opportunities and a new role for mobile analytics,” said Dr. Gijsbert Pols, lead product strategist at Adjust. “By understanding how and when consumers stream, as well as which channels and campaigns deliver the highest marketing impact, the potential to build a large, loyal user-base with high lifetime value is virtually limitless.” 

Additional key takeaways from the report include:

Most consumers are using mobile to stream at least once a day. Users in China (93.8%) and Turkey (91.9%) stream most frequently — every day to once a week — compared to 69.4% for the U.S., 57.2% for Japan, and 45.7% for the U.K.  

Users across all generations and regions stream for at least an hour per session, proving viewers are no longer just snacking bite-sized content — they are binging on entire episodes and full-length movies. 

Millennials, the biggest users of mobile streaming, are also watching for the longest periods of time. Session length averages just over 90 minutes (94.2), closely followed by Gen Z, which comes in at just under 90 minutes (87.6). 

Users 55 and older may appear to be the laggards in the data set, but 65 minutes per average session suggests this audience is warming up.

Consumers are spending a sizable amount on streaming and on-demand entertainment services. Korea is out in front at $42.68 per month, compared to $33.58 for the U.S. and $34.82 for the U.K. 

Connected Television unlocks new second-screening opportunities  

Adjust’s research also sheds light on how pervasive second-screening has become around the world, with the rise of Connected TV (CTV). On average, more than three quarters (76%) of all respondents use their mobile phone while watching television, with this viewing behavior most pronounced in Singapore and China (both 85%), closely followed by the U.S. (83%). 

Social apps are the number one choice for second-screeners — favored by 65.4% of respondents, on average — followed by banking (54.9%) and gaming (44.9%). Second-screeners in APAC have a healthy appetite for food delivery apps, with use strongest in China (65.2%), Korea (36.6%) and Singapore (48.2%).  

Advertisers can tap into the dual-screening trend by putting a call-to-action in their television ads, such as downloading a mobile app via a QR code. This has the potential to create a whole new and interactive brand experience, across two devices. 

Methodology 

The Mobile Streaming 2021 Report draws on consumer research conducted by Censuswide on behalf of Adjust from a global survey of 8,000 total TV/video streaming consumers aged 16+. The research uses nationally representative samples of 1,000 TV/video streaming consumers in each of the following countries: the U.K., Germany, Turkey, Japan, Singapore, Korea, and China between November 6, 2020 and November 10, 2020, and the U.S. between September 23 and September 29, 2020.  

President Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen first met back in 2008. Though the two have very different backgrounds and careers, they formed a deep friendship. Starting today, listeners can eavesdrop on their personal, intimate conversations in a new podcast: Renegades: Born in the USA.

The eight-episode series was announced today during Spotify’s Stream On event and is the second podcast to launch through Spotify’s partnership with President Obama and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground. Over the course of the season, President Obama and Springsteen will explore topics of race, fatherhood, marriage, and the future of America.

Dollar Shave Club and Comcast will serve as the first season’s presenting sponsors in the United States.

The longtime friends discuss their hometowns and role models, explore modern manhood, and confront the painfully divided state of the country today—and offer a vision of how we can all move forward together. 

President Barack Obama asks in the introduction of the first episode of the podcast: “How did we get here? How could we find our way back to a more unifying American story?”

He then goes on to explain: “That topic came to dominate so many of my conversations last year—with Michelle, with my daughters and with friends. And one of the friends just happened to be Mr. Bruce Springsteen. On the surface, Bruce and I don’t have a lot in common. But over the years, what we’ve found is that we’ve got a shared sensibility. About work, about family and about America. In our own ways, Bruce and I have been on parallel journeys trying to understand this country that’s given us both so much. Trying to chronicle the stories of its people. Looking for a way to connect our own individual searches for meaning and truth and community with the larger story of America.”

The first two episodes are available exclusively to the hundreds of millions of Free and Premium Spotify users around the world now. Give them a listen:

Acquisition immediately provides advertisers new levels of protection at scale with operational efficiencies

Flashtalking, the leading global independent platform for ad management, data-driven creative, and unified insights, has acquired anti-fraud innovator Protected Media. The deal will enable Flashtalking to provide comprehensive verification capabilities across Desktop, Mobile Web and In-App, at scale, to the rapidly growing APAC media sector. It will also see the company become the only MRC accredited independent ad server for Sophisticated Invalid Traffic Detection and Filtration in OTT. 

By bringing advertisers and agencies unprecedented levels of protection from fraud and improvements in viewability, at scale and with operational efficiencies, Flashtalking is reinforcing its commitment to providing independent evaluation of media quality across all channels, including the growing CTV market. 

The acquisition establishes a unique and vital set of operational benefits:

Complete suite of verification tools 

The company now offers fraud detection and viewability services globally across Desktop, Mobile Web, In-App, CTV/OTT, and is able to fill any verification gaps. 

Operational Efficiency 

Flashtalking and Protected Media provide accelerated speed to market for verification set-up and management by eliminating the manual, error-prone shared spreadsheets in favor of a fast, automated, errorless workflow. 

Business Simplification 

As with everything Flashtalking brings to market, the offering simplifies the ad tech stack. By bundling verification services with an advertiser’s ad serving globally, the company provides the opportunity to reduce the administrative burden of managing multiple vendor relationships across regions. 

MRC Accreditation for OTT

As the only independent ad management platform that is MRC accredited for Sophisticated Invalid Traffic Detection and Filtration in OTT, the company finally fills a critical gap for advertisers who may have charged ahead into the OTT segment but have yet to implement the necessary verification safeguards. 

“The marketplace knows that Flashtalking is wholly committed to quality in all channels and on all platforms where we support and serve our clients. That’s who we are at our core,” said Flashtalking CEO John Nardone. “This incredibly beneficial acquisition signals that we are all-in on combating ad fraud, from the most powerful position to do so at scale. As the only independent ad server that the MRC has accredited in this arena, Flashtalking is positioned to be the most objective third-party evaluator of OTT/CTV media quality on behalf of advertisers and their agencies.”

“We’ve long been recognised as the industry’s boldest innovators in the fight against fraud in the digital advertising supply chain,” said Asaf Greiner, Founder and CEO of Protected Media. “Given the company’s overarching philosophy on ensuring quality and their operational commitment to the OTT/CTV space, our coming together with Flashtalking could not be a more helpful union and proposition for advertisers. The new offering stands alone in its ability to serve advertisers at the interface where it matters most.” 

Dominic Powers, Head of Business Growth, Solutions APAC Dentsu, said of the news: “While verification has become a standard requirement for global brands, the complexity and cost of implementation across channels has until now prevented its growth in APAC; and it only really started to gain momentum in 2020, when we saw a 40-50% drop in post bid fraud in the region. That being said, market data would suggest that only around 10% of brands are using verification for channels such as CTV. At Dentsu, we are firm believers in aggregation and automation in media, and this acquisition is the next step in making sophisticated analytics more accessible and providing operational efficiencies that will help brands of all sizes, and their agencies, drive real growth.”

The cooking reality show, “Asianet Family Cook Off” that captured the hearts of Malayalam speaking expatriates across the Middle East, is back for its second season.

This season’s show features 12 expert Malayalee families from across the UAE, pitted against each other, through a series of cooking challenges. Participating teams will be represented by two family members. Season 2 of Asianet Family Cook Off is presented by Lifebuoy and powered by ID Fresh Food. The show will be aired every Saturday at 9.30pm, with a repeat airing on Sunday at 9.30pm only on Asianet Middle East.

12 top teams were shortlisted for their culinary expertise, through a rigorous screening process, from the numerous entries received.

Hosted by Sharu Varghese, the show will be judged by Cinu Chandran, the UAE’s celebrity chef and food consultant. Social media sensation Jumana Khan, will also be part of the show and brings along her contagious energy, into this year’s edition of presents Asianet Family Cook Off Season 2 . The new season will also showcase exciting new recipes for the viewers.   

Season 2 of Asianet Family Cook Off is presented by Lifebuoy and powered by: ID Fresh Food. The show is also supported by Dairy Partner: Al Ain Farms and Associate sponsors: Knorr and Jiff; Spiced up by: Nellara.

UFC to Produce Weekly Live Show on TikTok

Full-time TikTok Resource to be Dedicated to

Producing UFC Content

UFC®, the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization, and TikTok today announced a groundbreaking multi-year partnership that calls for UFC to produce live content on the world’s fastest-growing social media platform.

Among the highlights, UFC and TikTok will collaborate to program new weekly shows on TikTok, featuring live looks at weigh ins and press conferences, athlete interviews, arena tours, fighter training segments, and more.  Each show will be programed around an upcoming UFC live event to drive awareness, providing fans with an exciting, unique way to experience UFC on TikTok while they prepare for UFC’s biggest events. 

UFC and TikTok will collaborate to distribute hundreds of pieces of content annually via UFC’s global TikTok channels, including @UFC, @UFCRussia, @UFCBrasil, and @UFCEurope.  Collectively, these channels have more than seven million followers.

To fully support the partnership, UFC will engage a dedicated, full-time resource who will be focused on producing original live and VOD content for @UFC on TikTok and who will liaise directly with the TikTok team to help grow UFC’s global community on TikTok.  This is the first position of its kind created jointly by TikTok and a sports property.

"We are thrilled to deepen our partnership with UFC and launch a robust slate of exclusive live content for the TikTok community,” said Harish Sarma, Director, Global Strategic Partnerships, Americas and Oceania, TikTok.  “Now more than ever, sports fans are craving the up-close-and-personal moments they are missing by not attending live events. Through this partnership, we are excited to bring to TikTok, the action and excitement of UFC both inside and outside the Octagon."

“This partnership with TikTok is a tremendous addition to UFC’s content distribution ecosystem,” said David Shaw, UFC Senior Vice President of International and Content.  “We want to be everywhere our fans are consuming content and TikTok continues to break new ground in reaching a diverse, global audience.  This collaboration is a great way to drive awareness to our tent pole live events while delivering compelling content to our fans, 24/7.”

Zee TV is set to present audiences with the world’s first-ever music league - the Indian Pro Music League (IPML). While the world of sports has seen several league competitions, be it in India or abroad, this first-of-its-kind music league will have six teams owned by the likes of Shraddha Kapoor, along with her father and brother, Shakti Kapoor and Siddhant Kapoor, Govinda along with wife Sunita; Rajkummar Rao and Riteish Deshmukh, along with wife Genelia D’Souza Deshmukh, representing different regions of India, battling it out against each other in a musical championship. Each team will have popular playback singers as captains, a reality show star and a fresh talent.

An exciting addition to the already star-studded list of ambassadors is none other than India’s Biggest Superstar - Salman Khan. He will be seen as the IPML Brand Ambassador on what we can call the biggest musical stages on television.  The show will be broadcast on Zee TV Middle East and is produced by Fathom Pictures.

To witness the grand premiere of Indian Pro Music League, tune in to Zee TV Middle East on 26th February 2021 at 9 PM UAE and to follow the revolutionary reality show, tune in to Zee TV Middle East every Saturday and Sunday at 9 PM UAE

Defending Against Critical Threats Report identifies migration to remote working and evolution of ransomware as key contributors towards diverse criminal activity

Cisco has revealed the findings of its Defending Against Critical Threats Report, noting changes in criminal activity during 2020 and new methods of exploitation, arising as a result of the pandemic.

During a year in which transitioning to digital infrastructures became essential for all, Cisco explores the ongoing complexity and evolution of cyber threats, to inform organizations and empower stronger decision-making.

Increased Vulnerabilities with Remote Working

Cisco Umbrella – a cloud-driven Secure Internet Gateway – examined traffic running through its DNS servers, identifying mid-March 2020 as a peak period of increased remote connections. Between the first and last week of March alone, the number of remote workers had effectively doubled.

Cisco Talos noticed a rise in spam emails containing associates with words such as ‘pandemic’ and ‘COVID-19’ in early February 2020. Researchers from the Cisco Umbrella team also showed that on a single day in March 2020, enterprise customers connected to 47,059 domains that contained ‘COVID’ or ‘corona’ in the name. Of these, four percent were blocked as malicious. By late April, the percentage of domains blocked via e-mail filtering peaked as high as 75 percent.

The Evolution of Ransomware and Big-Game Hunting

One of the most prominent trends of 2020 was the widespread adoption of new tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) related to the deployment of ransomware on corporate networks.

Rather than simply activating ransomware on the first successfully compromised system, adversaries are now leveraging systems as an initial access point into the network. They then move laterally throughout the network, gaining access to additional systems and escalating privileges. Ransomware can be activated on all of these systems simultaneously, maximizing the damage inflicted on the organization.

This approach to the attack lifecycle has become known as ‘big-game hunting’ and has gained popularity, with many adversaries actively targeting backup systems, domain controllers, and other business-critical servers during the post-compromise phase of their attacks.

Commenting on the findings, Fady Younes, Cybersecurity Director, Middle East and Africa, Cisco said, “The past year has presented enterprises with a number of new challenges, as they circumnavigated the complex threat landscape in an increasingly digital world. This year, CISOs and IT teams must ensure to implement next-generation firewall measures, advanced malware protection and secure network analytics to know who is connected to the network and for what purpose.”

Targeted Threats for Maximum Impact

Other notable threats included Cisco Talos’ discovery of a new malware campaign in April, known as ‘PoetRAT’. Research showed that the malware was distributed using URLs that mimicked certain government domains, targeting private companies. Talos observed multiple new campaigns from these threat actors over the course of the year, indicating a change in the actor's capabilities and showing their maturity toward better operational security.

In December 2020, a major supply chain attack was uncovered on a company producing infrastructure management applications. Systems had been compromised earlier in the year and malicious code was introduced into product updates that were made available on their website. A number of organizations that use the software, and had patched with the malicious updates, subsequently reported that they had been breached, including security companies, government agencies, and others.

“Many of the new threats we have identified involve compromising endpoints, which are crucial to secure and maintain in today’s world of remote work. Secure endpoints can protect an organization from major impact after an attack, whether on-premises or remote. Decisionmakers should invest in technologies which integrate prevention, detection, threat hunting, and response capabilities in a single solution for greater visibility and more actionable insights to strengthen security posture,” Younes continued.

It happens in a million homes every night: people sit there, remote controls hanging from their hands, not knowing what to watch next. For those with a thing for real-life thrillers and eerie mysteries, discovery+ has it covered! Discovery’s newly launched video streaming service, discovery+, has a plethora of fantastic gripping documentaries based on shocking real-events, proving that the truth can be stranger than fiction after all.

JonBenet Ramsey: What Really Happened?

This exclusive feature-length discovery+ Original explores the iconic murder case of the six-year-old child beauty queen, JonBenet Ramsey, with a fresh perspective. For the first time, viewers can hear the previously unreleased audio diaries of Lou Smit, famed Colorado Springs homicide detective who was coaxed from retirement to try and bring some clarity to the chaos surrounding this case.  Lou tests alternate theories often asking the questions that the Boulder police department had not.  Was there an intruder? Was all the DNA identified? Could the killer still be at large? These audio tapes reveal how Smit meticulously tested each piece of evidence, debunked erroneous theories and uncovered new information that drove the case in a completely new direction.

Aileen Wuornos Mind Of A Monster

Starting in late 1989 through November 1990, seven men in and around Marion county, Florida fell victim to an elusive serial killer. As detectives slowly pieced together the evidence, they discovered the killer they were after was a woman named Aileen Wuornos. Aileen was America's first female serial killer. She wrote down her darkest secrets for her best friend whilst on death row and now her friend reveals what happened.

The Impossible Row

After thirteen days, world-record holding explorer Colin O’Brady, along with a crew of world class ocean rowers, has achieved what was once considered impossible – crossing the treacherous Drake Passage from the southernmost tip of South America, Cape Horn, to Antarctica. Battling intense winds, 25-foot swells and stormy weather, Colin and his team set off in a rowboat – with no sail or motor to rely on – as they endured the most unpredictable waters on the planet, all in a 29-foot rowboat. The row pushed the entire crew to their limits, testing their physical and mental strength as they worked to accomplish something that many thought was impossible.  

Finding Escobar’s Millions 

During his reign running the world's biggest drug cartel, Pablo Escobar amassed an estimated fortune of US$30 billion... and then buried it all over Colombia. With unprecedented access and permission from the Colombian government, two former DEA agents, Chris Feistl and Jerry Salameh, who spent their careers hunting down Colombian narcos, are now returning to Colombia in search of Pablo Escobar’s buried treasure.

These and many more thrilling documentaries are now available on discovery+. discovery+ can be accessed via STARZPLAY, which is available to download online and via respective iOS and Android app stores.