Meta says India most significant country for all new things across its platforms
Kolkata (PTI): India is the most significant country for Meta in terms of all the new things that feature across its platforms -- Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, a top company official said.
Meta has also provided a great opportunity for numerous brands and millions of creators to express their creativity and build audiences in India through short-form videos, said Manish Chopra, Director and Head of Partnerships for Facebook India (Meta).
"India is a very critical market for our platforms from multiple dimensions. A lot of new product learning and incubation is done here, and 'Reels' is an example of that... this is the market where we have done the most amount of testing of new product features.
"India is the most significant market where the focus is for all the new things that we are doing across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp," he told PTI.
Chopra was speaking on the sidelines of Meta's annual 'Creator Day', which was recently held for the first time in Kolkata.
The event celebrates creators and gives them a chance to create, collaborate and learn from each other, he said.
Chopra said 'Reels' (short-from videos), which was launched two years back, has gained massive popularity in India, including tier-2 and tier-3 cities.
"India is the lighthouse country for 'Reels' for Meta globally. As per a new research report, around 200 million people are spending about 45 mins per day on short-form videos, and this figure is estimated to go up to 600 million people.
"Reels is helping creators express their creativity, passion, and build audiences and followers that relate with them through the content," he said.
Short-form videos have also become a potent medium for brands to promote their products on Facebook and Instagram, the official said.
'Reels' provide a different and authentic kind of voice for brands to engage with users, he said.
"Digital advertising is a highly performing means for brands (large and small). It's an efficient way to grow... In India, more than 50 per cent of the followers for the businesses that are on Instagram are coming from tier-2 and tier-3 cities; so a company can reach out to these markets by being on Instagram and Facebook," Chopra said.
He also said that a lot of music trends have been happening through short-form videos, as artistes make use of the '1 Minute Music' format on Instagram to get "tremendous" distribution.
"We believe that cricket, Bollywood and music define a lot of culture in India. So, we continue to invest closely with partners who create these IPs (intellectual property)," he said.
Meta had recently announced a partnership with the ICC that would enable people to watch the best match moments and highlights of the Men's T20 World Cup, through clips on 'Reels' on Instagram and Facebook.
On fake profiles and the spread of misinformation on Meta platforms, Chopra said the tech conglomerate takes constant measures to rein in such menace.
"Putting a check on fake profiles and spread of misinformation is a constant area of investment for us. We are proactively taking down millions of fake accounts, and have a large organisation that ensures we are responding appropriately to complaints. We also help users become more secure about their own accounts through new security features," he said.
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
