标签： North America

Major League Baseball (MLB) has finalized a series of groundbreaking broadcasting agreements with leading media giants, including Netflix, ESPN, and NBCUniversal, to expand its reach and enhance viewer access over the next three seasons. Netflix, the global streaming powerhouse, will showcase marquee MLB events such as the league’s opening night and the Home Run Derby, which annually captivate millions of fans. ESPN has secured rights to MLB.TV, the league’s on-demand service, enabling fans to watch out-of-market games starting in the 2026 season. Meanwhile, NBCUniversal will reintroduce Sunday night games to its network after a 25-year hiatus. Additionally, Netflix will broadcast the World Baseball Classic in Japan, while Fox Sports retains its coverage of the World Series, and Apple TV streams Friday Night Baseball. These deals emerged after ESPN opted out of the final three seasons of its previous contract, which would have cost the network over $1.5 billion. The negotiations reflect MLB’s strategic push to diversify its broadcasting platforms and maximize its global audience.

In a significant move to bolster their strategic collaboration, Emirates and Air Canada have announced the extension of their codeshare partnership until December 2032. This decision comes on the heels of a highly successful three-year partnership that has already served over 550,000 passengers across 56 codeshare destinations, connecting Canada, the United States, Dubai, and other major global hubs. The renewed agreement, formalized through a memorandum of understanding, aims to deepen cooperation between the two aviation giants, enhance passenger and cargo services, and explore new Canadian gateways within their shared network. Additionally, the airlines are considering a joint cargo project to optimize the global movement of goods. Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, emphasized that the partnership will strengthen the airline’s capabilities, offering customers a more seamless travel experience and expanded connectivity. Mark Galardo, Air Canada’s Executive Vice President, highlighted the success of the collaboration, which prompted the early renewal and extension of the agreement. This partnership is expected to significantly boost tourism and trade between Canada and the UAE, while providing travelers with greater flexibility and supporting efficient cargo operations across the Americas, the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent.

A groundbreaking UAE-based start-up, FluencePay, is revolutionizing the intersection of social media and commerce by rewarding users for sharing their shopping experiences online. Co-founders Vaibhav Agarwal and Ayushee Tyagi unveiled their innovative platform during an investor pitching session organized by Khaleej Times Events on November 19, 2025. The platform leverages artificial intelligence to incentivize users to post about their purchases on social media, transforming everyday shoppers into influential advocates for brands. FluencePay’s model is built on the premise that peer recommendations are more trusted and cost-effective than traditional marketing channels. A recent survey highlighted that 88% of consumers rely on trusted peer recommendations, with friends delivering eight times higher engagement than mega influencers. The platform operates seamlessly: users create a profile, link their social media accounts, and receive a “Fluent Score,” an AI-generated rating that measures their authentic influence based on factors like following, engagement, and posting behavior. This score determines the cashback rewards users earn for sharing their shopping experiences. These rewards can be redeemed as gift vouchers at over 2,000 outlets across the UAE. Tyagi described the platform as “productized word of mouth, measurable, scalable, and instantly working.” FluencePay has already partnered with national banks, Y Cube’s network of 45,000 GCC merchants, and universities like SP Jain and IIMA to attract early adopters. The start-up aims to onboard 60,000 users and 400 merchants within the next 12 months, with plans for global expansion into the GCC, UK, and US markets. Agarwal and Tyagi, who bring extensive experience from PayPal, digital marketing, and other start-ups, have secured advisory support from industry veterans at PepsiCo and the Landmark Group. FluencePay is currently raising $5 million to achieve its ambitious goal of reaching one million users and generating $70 million in revenue over the next three years.

Nvidia, the global leader in chip manufacturing, has once again demonstrated its dominance by exceeding Wall Street’s revenue and sales forecasts, alleviating concerns over AI-related expenditures that have recently unsettled the stock market. The company’s quarterly earnings report, released on Wednesday, revealed a staggering 62% increase in revenue, reaching $57 billion for the three months ending in October. This surge was primarily fueled by the robust demand for its chips, which are integral to AI data centers. The division responsible for these chips saw a remarkable 66% rise in sales, surpassing $51 billion. Additionally, Nvidia’s fourth-quarter sales projections, estimated at around $65 billion, exceeded market expectations, leading to a more than 3% increase in its stock price during after-hours trading. As the world’s most valuable company, Nvidia is widely regarded as a key indicator of the AI industry’s health. Its performance is closely monitored by investors and analysts alike, as it provides critical insights into market sentiment and the broader trajectory of AI development.