Entertainment
Salman’s ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ to release in China
Mumbai, Jan 22 (IANS) Bollywood superstar Salman Khan’s blockbuster “Bajrangi Bhaijaan” will release in China on March 2, making it the actor’s first film to hit the screens in the country.
Eros International, in association with Chinese film company E Stars Films Ltd, will release the movie in China during the Chinese Lantern Festival, according to a statement issued on Monday.
Dubbed in Chinese, the film is expected to get a wide release across 8,000-plus screens, the statement said.
Directed by Kabir Khan, “Bajrangi Bhaijaan” stars Salman as Bajrangi, an ardent devotee of Hindu deity Hanuman, and his arduous journey to reunite a six-year-old Pakistani girl — who somehow gets lost in India — with her parents, back to her hometown in Pakistan.
Given the success of Indian film releases in China, the studio and the makers are confident of the movie’s box office potential in China, one of more promising international markets for Indian films.
Jyoti Deshpande, Group CEO, Eros International, said: “China has emerged as an important market and major box office earner for Indian films in recent years, what with the recent success of ‘Dangal’. We are delighted to partner with E Stars to showcase our film to China.
“Our Indo-China co-productions are still in the making which we are extremely excited about. Meanwhile, what better film than ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’, starring one of India’s most loved superstars that weaves the universal story of cross-border friendship, to release in a growing market like China.
“There are no international films releasing during that period in China so we hope to have a fantastic run at the box office in the world’s biggest film market.”
Allen Liu, CEO, E Stars Films Ltd, said there is “high expectation and curiosity for the film post the success of recent Indian releases in China and the positive word of mouth ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ enjoys”.
“We anticipate tremendous potential in this beautiful drama starring one of the most popular actors in Indian cinema in a film that speaks the language of emotions like courage and hope which are universal,” Liu said.
“Bajrangi Bhaijaan” is the first of the film associations Eros is exploring with China.
Recognising the significant market opportunity in China, Eros and director Kabir Khan are once again coming together for a travel drama, “The Zookeeper” (working title) under its franchise studio Trinity. It will be shot in Hindi and Mandarin languages.
–IANS
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Entertainment
Casino Days Reveal Internal Data on Most Popular Smartphones
International online casino Casino Days has published a report sharing their internal data on what types and brands of devices are used to play on the platform by users from the South Asian region.
Such aggregate data analyses allow the operator to optimise their website for the brands and models of devices people are actually using.
The insights gained through the research also help Casino Days tailor their services based on the better understanding of their clients and their needs.
Desktops and Tablets Lose the Battle vs Mobile
The primary data samples analysed by Casino Days reveal that mobile connections dominate the market in South Asia and are responsible for a whopping 96.6% of gaming sessions, while computers and tablets have negligible shares of 2.9% and 0.5% respectively.
The authors of the study point out that historically, playing online casino was exclusively done on computers, and attribute thе major shift to mobile that has unfolded over time to the wide spread of cheaper smartphones and mobile data plans in South Asia.
“Some of the reasons behind this massive difference in device type are affordability, technical advantages, as well as cheaper and more obtainable internet plans for mobiles than those for computers,” the researchers comment.
Xiaomi and Vivo Outperform Samsung, Apple Way Down in Rankings
Chinese brands Xiaomi and Vivo were used by 21.9% and 20.79% of Casino Days players from South Asia respectively, and together with the positioned in third place with a 18.1% share South Korean brand Samsung dominate the market among real money gamers in the region.
Cupertino, California-based Apple is way down in seventh with a user share of just 2.29%, overshadowed by Chinese brands Realme (11.43%), OPPO (11.23%), and OnePlus (4.07%).
Huawei is at the very bottom of the chart with a tiny share just below the single percent mark, trailing behind mobile devices by Motorola, Google, and Infinix.
The data on actual phone usage provided by Casino Days, even though limited to the gaming parts of the population of South Asia, paints a different picture from global statistics on smartphone shipments by vendors.
Apple and Samsung have been sharing the worldwide lead for over a decade, while current regional leader Xiaomi secured their third position globally just a couple of years ago.
Striking Android Dominance among South Asian Real Money Gaming Communities
The shifted market share patterns of the world’s top smartphone brands in South Asia observed by the Casino Days research paper reveal a striking dominance of Android devices at the expense of iOS-powered phones.
On the global level, Android enjoys a comfortable lead with a sizable 68.79% share which grows to nearly 79% when we look at the whole continent of Asia. The data on South Asian real money gaming communities suggests that Android’s dominance grows even higher and is north of the 90% mark.
Among the major factors behind these figures, the authors of the study point to the relative affordability of and greater availability of Android devices in the region, especially when manufactured locally in countries like India and Vietnam.
“And, with influencers and tech reviews putting emphasis on Android devices, the choice of mobile phone brand and OS becomes easy; Android has a much wider range of products and caters to the Asian online casino market in ways that Apple can’t due to technical limitations,” the researchers add.
The far better integration achieved by Google Pay compared to its counterpart Apple Pay has also played a crucial role in shaping the existing smartphone market trends.
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