Vice Media files for bankruptcy ahead of planned sale

Launched in 1994 as a punk magazine called Voice of Montreal by Shane Smith, Gavin McInnes and Suroosh Alvi, Vice currently operates in more than 30 countries. (AFP/File)
Launched in 1994 as a punk magazine called Voice of Montreal by Shane Smith, Gavin McInnes and Suroosh Alvi, Vice currently operates in more than 30 countries. (AFP/File)
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Updated 15 May 2023
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Vice Media files for bankruptcy ahead of planned sale

Vice Media files for bankruptcy ahead of planned sale
  • Lenders’ consortium could gain control in $225m takeover
  • Filing meant to facilitate sale, said reports earlier this month

LONDON: American-Canadian digital media and broadcasting company Vice Media reportedly filed for bankruptcy on Monday ahead of a planned sale to a group of lenders.

The company, whose assets include Vice News, Motherboard, Refinery29, i-D and Vice TV, is expected to be sold to a lender consortium, which includes Fortress Investment Group, Soros Fund Management and Monroe Capital.

The decision to file for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US is seen as a way to cap losses and to facilitate the approximately $225 million takeover, which will provide the capital “in the form of a credit bid for substantially all of the company’s assets” and also assume “significant liabilities” at closing.

Under a credit bid, creditors can swap their secured debt, rather than pay cash, for the company’s assets.

Vice said in a statement that it “expects to emerge as a financially healthy and stronger company” when the process concludes, according to reports.

“Vice serves a huge global audience with a unique brand of news, entertainment and lifestyle content,” said Bruce Dixon and Hozefa Lokhandwala, Vice’s co-CEOs, in the statement.

“This accelerated court-supervised sale process will strengthen the company and position Vice for long-term growth, thereby safeguarding the kind of authentic journalism and content creation that makes Vice such a trusted brand for young people and such a valued partner to brands, agencies and platforms.”

The youth-focused digital publisher said it would continue to operate during bankruptcy proceedings, and expects to complete the sale process within two to three months.

In the court filing the group added that the “company’s international entities, and the Vice TV joint venture with A&E, are not part of the Chapter 11 filing.” And that “Vice’s multi-platform media brands, including Vice, Vice News, Vice TV, Vice Studios, Pulse Films, Virtue, Refinery29 and i-D, will continue to produce and deliver award-winning content across platforms.”

Rumors of the bankruptcy and sale emerged earlier this month, following a major internal restructuring and the cancellation of the group’s flagship program, Vice News Tonight.

The news comes amid a challenging period for several technology and media companies, as they resort to downsizing in recent months due to a turbulent economy and weak advertising market.

In April, BuzzFeed announced it would shut down its news division, while other media companies, including CNN, Vox, and The Washington Post, announced layoffs and closures.

Launched in 1994 as a punk magazine called Voice of Montreal by Shane Smith, Gavin McInnes and Suroosh Alvi, Vice currently operates in more than 30 countries.

Throughout its history, the platform has been lauded as a global success for its ability to produce edgy, youth-focused content across print, events, music, online, TV and feature films. This content has drawn younger audiences to the news and media world.

In 2017, the next-generation media and entertainment platform that once “threatened to supplant legacy media companies” reached a peak value of $5.7 billion.

Vice has had a presence in the Middle East since 2017, when it established a regional office in Dubai and recently announced the opening of its new headquarters and creative agency in Riyadh, from which it is expected to produce content and further expand its footprint in the region.


Spotify highlights rising talents by naming Zena Emad as September’s EQUAL Arabia Ambassador

Spotify highlights rising talents by naming Zena Emad as September’s EQUAL Arabia Ambassador
Updated 21 September 2023
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Spotify highlights rising talents by naming Zena Emad as September’s EQUAL Arabia Ambassador

Spotify highlights rising talents by naming Zena Emad as September’s EQUAL Arabia Ambassador
  • Digital music service celebrated the Saudi talent ahead of the Kingdom’s National Day

LONDON: Spotify announced Saudi songstress Zena Emad as its EQUAL Arabia Ambassador for September. 

As an extension of Spotify’s global Women in Music Program, EQUAL Arabia is devoted to elevating the narratives of Arab women artists by offering support on and beyond the platform.

“I can’t express how thrilled I am to join the Spotify family,” said Emad in a statement.

“I’m incredibly proud and amazed by the number of people who enjoy hearing my voice, and even more delighted that Spotify will be the platform connecting me to my fans and admirers.”

Emad was picked for the cover of the EQUAL Arabia playlist for the month of September, and her recent hit, “Habeetah,” can be found on the EQUAL Arabia playlist and the global EQUAL playlist.

She is also celebrated on Spotify’s billboard in Times Square, New York City, ahead of Saudi National Day.   

With songs like “Land of Heroes,” “Habeetah,” and “Ya Awali,” Emad has become a standout figure in the Saudi music scene, blending pop with global rhythms to gain a significant following.

“I also want to speak about the wonderful opportunity my beloved country has given me as a young Saudi woman with big ambitions, helping me fulfill my dreams and aspirations,” Emad added.

“I look forward to more support and anticipation from the audience, as the best is yet to come.”


BBC Cairo staff reaches agreement on wages and benefits after multiple strikes

BBC Cairo staff reaches agreement on wages and benefits after multiple strikes
Updated 21 September 2023
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BBC Cairo staff reaches agreement on wages and benefits after multiple strikes

BBC Cairo staff reaches agreement on wages and benefits after multiple strikes
  • Agreement has been reached over salaries, transportation allowance, and health insurance
  • BBC Cairo’s staff staged a series of strikes to protest discriminatory behavior by London management

LONDON: In a negotiation process, BBC’s London management has agreed to ensure higher salaries and essential benefits to its staff at the Cairo office.

The agreement was reached after a series of protests started in June 2023 against discriminatory behavior in BBC’s financial policies.

The head of the Egyptian Journalist Syndicate, Khaled El-Balshy, present in the negotiation process, confirmed to Ahram Online that “the new regulations would provide compensation increases ranging from 75 to 142 percent for entry-level positions, as well as equal transportation allowances for all employees and double allowances for night shift workers.”

Under the agreement, “each employee’s BBC-sponsored health insurance will be increased to cover an extra family member,” noted Khaled El-Balshy.

In addition, BBC management decided to reconsider its “volatile markets” policy to tackle economic recessions in nations where it operates.

According to the syndicate, the review will be finished by December 2023, but it will be implemented in BBC Cairo with immediate effect.

BBC News operates in 58 locations across 44 countries and adjusts salaries accordingly to account for inflation.

Egypt is in the grip of a financial crisis, with around one-third of its 109 million population living in destitution.

According to data from the state-run Central Agency for Mobilization and Statistics, the annual inflation rate hit 36.8 percent in June, up from 33.7 percent in the last few months.

BBC Cairo staff began a gradual strike that started in June this year, followed by a three-day strike in July and a 10-day strike in August 2023.


French journalist arrested over document leaks of alleged France-Egypt spy operation

French journalist arrested over document leaks of alleged France-Egypt spy operation
Updated 21 September 2023
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French journalist arrested over document leaks of alleged France-Egypt spy operation

French journalist arrested over document leaks of alleged France-Egypt spy operation
  • Report found that French intelligence information had been hijacked by Egypt to target smugglers
  • Ariane Lavrilleux was released on Wednesday after public outcry

LONDON:  French journalist Ariane Lavrilleux was arrested and her home searched earlier this week for reporting on the alleged hijack of French intelligence information by Egypt two years ago, according to Disclose and Lavrilleux’s lawyer.

Investigative website Disclose published a series of articles authored by the Lavrilleux in November 2021 based on hundreds of secret documents.

It said they showed how information from a French counter-intelligence operation in Egypt intended to track jihadist militants, codenamed “Sirli,” was used by the Egyptian state for “a campaign of arbitrary killings” against smugglers operating along the Libyan border.

Lavrilleux, an investigative reporter working in the Middle East and based in Cairo, was released Wednesday evening after nearly two days in police custody.

Virginie Marquet, the lawyer for Lavrilleux and Disclose, condemned the arrest saying the published information is of public interest and “a new, unacceptable attack on the confidentiality of sources.”

Marquet said: “I am appalled and worried about the escalation in attacks on the freedom to inform and the coercive measures taken against the Disclose journalist. This search risks seriously undermining the confidentiality of journalists’ sources.”

Rights groups denounced the arrest and called for the investigation against her to be dropped, saying that questioning “reporters about their confidential sources places them under unwarranted pressure and could have a chilling effect on defense reporting.”

The initial Disclose articles said French forces were complicit in at least 19 bombings against smugglers between 2016 and 2018 in the region.

The documents showed there were warnings from officials within the French government, but the operation was not called into question, Disclose said.

Its publication prompted France’s armed forces minister to call for an investigation for “violation of national defense secrecy,” and a case was opened in July 2022 by the Paris prosecutor’s office that was then placed in the hands of France’s domestic intelligence agency, DGSI.

With AFP


Rupert Murdoch steps down as chairman of Fox, News Corp

Rupert Murdoch steps down as chairman of Fox, News Corp
Updated 21 September 2023
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Rupert Murdoch steps down as chairman of Fox, News Corp

Rupert Murdoch steps down as chairman of Fox, News Corp
  • His son, Lachlan Murdoch, to replace him

LONDON: Rupert Murdoch has stepped down as the chairman of Fox Corp. and News Corp, ending a more than seven-decade career during which he created a media empire spanning from Australia to the United States.
His son, Lachlan Murdoch, will become the sole chairman of News Corp. and continue as the chair and CEO of Fox, the companies said on Thursday.
The news comes just months after Murdoch, 92, scrapped a plan that would have reunited his media empire by merging Fox and News Corp.
Murdoch, who has near-controlling stakes in both the companies, will be appointed chairman emeritus of both the companies.


Huawei to launch voice and video call app

Huawei to launch voice and video call app
Updated 21 September 2023
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Huawei to launch voice and video call app

Huawei to launch voice and video call app
  • GoChat Messenger will offer users free international calls, money transfers, other services

LONDON: Huawei Mobile Services announced on Thursday the addition of GoChat Messenger to the HUAWEI AppGallery, in collaboration with etisalat by e&.

GoChat Messenger is a free global voice and video calling app that offers a wide range of features, including free worldwide communication.

“The integration of GoChat Messenger, offered by etisalat by e&, into the Huawei Mobile Services’ ecosystem has been a remarkable achievement,” said William Hu, managing director of Huawei Consumer Business Group, Middle East and Africa Eco Development and Operation.

“This latest addition further enriches our array of products, catering to the escalating need for enhanced connectivity in the digital era.”

The GoChat Messenger, which officially debuted by the UAE telecom operator in 2022, is extended to both Huawei users and etisalat by e& customers.

The all-in-one app provides users with a wide range of services such as high-definition video call, secure money transfers, entertainment, news updates, and access to attractive deals and home services, as well as a new artificial intelligence feature called GoChat GPT.

In a statement, Huawei said that the collaboration with etisalat by e& is a testament to the growing popularity of Huawei devices in the Gulf region and Huawei’s commitment to providing its users with innovative solutions.