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Sony, Marvel breakup; lenders in Huawei CFO indictment; iQIYI, MNC OTT venture

TOP NEWS

* Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. and Marvel Studios LLC will not be collaborating on future "Spider-Man" releases amid a dispute over revenue sharing between the studios' parent companies Sony Corp. and Walt Disney Co., Deadline.com reported, citing sources with knowledge of the details. Disney reportedly demanded a 50-50 co-financing arrangement between the studios, but Sony declined to accept those terms.

* U.S.-based Citigroup Inc. and France's BNP Paribas SA have been named in the 13-count indictment brought by the U.S. against Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. CFO Meng Wanzhou, who is facing charges of wire fraud and breaking sanctions against Iran, Reuters reported. Both lenders are being considered as "victim" institutions for allegedly being misled by the company and Meng about business dealings in Iran despite U.S. sanctions.

* Chinese video streaming service iQIYI Inc. joined forces with Jakarta-based media company PT. Media Nusantara Citra Tbk, or MNC, to form a joint venture to operate an over-the-top platform in Indonesia, KrASIA reported. The two companies will merge their content libraries and co-produce original content.

* PCCW Ltd.'s over-the-top platform Viu is targeting the Philippines' digitally-savvy, fiction readers by using artificial intelligence and big data with tech-driven story company Wattpad Corp., according to Janice Lee, managing partner at PCCW Media.

PAN-ASIAN

* Telenor Connexion AB appointed Seth Ryding chief sales officer for the Asia-Pacific region. Additionally, Ryding will take a seat on Telenor Connexion's management team.

JAPAN

* SoftBank Group Corp.-backed Uhuru Corp. is planning to go public in London in October, London's Financial Times reported. The company intends to submit its intention to float on AIM in early September, a source said.

SOUTH KOREA

* South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT will allocate an additional 5 billion won for national internet of things and 5G infrastructure projects to support the country's digitization and innovation efforts, Digital Daily reported.

CHINA, HONG KONG AND TAIWAN

* At least 11 of Huawei's research facilities were included in a new blacklist of Huawei affiliates that U.S. companies cannot do business with unless they have government approval. According to analysts cited by Nikkei Asian Review, the decision to target research facilities could hinder Huawei's ability to innovate.

* In other Huawei news, the telecom equipment maker is planning to open a second office in Moscow, Russia, Telecompaper reported, citing sources mentioned by Kommersant. The plans come at a time when the company is looking to hire about 1,500 employees for its new Russian research and development centers.

* Beijing ByteDance Technology Co. Ltd. purchased real estate search app Xingfuli, paying 1 million yuan as registered capital, KrASIA reported, citing Chinese media outlet IPO Zaozhidao.

* Tencent Holdings Ltd. made another investment in Yijiupi, a beverage business-to-business trading platform, by investing US$80 million in the Beijing-based company, KrASIA reported, citing 36Kr.

* Shanghai-based video game developer Perfect World Co. Ltd. said the Chinese version of Valve Corp.-owned digital game distribution platform Steam will be tailored for local users in order to conform to domestic regulations. According to TechNode, the first batch of games that will be launched on Steam China include Valve's "Dota2" and "Dota Underlords."

* Taihe Music Group partnered with the Sweden-based music publisher The Kennel to form a new production company for Chinese musicians, 36Kr reported. Meanwhile, Taihe launched DMH, a digital music distribution platform.

INDIA AND SOUTH ASIA

* Lionsgate Play is launching in India through a partnership between Vodafone Idea Ltd. and Starzplay, the subscription platform of Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. subsidiary Starz, Advanced Television reported. Lionsgate Play, which will offer Lionsgate titles such as "The Hunger Games" and "La La Land," will be available to Vodafone Play and Idea Movies & TV subscribers.

* Eros International PLC's entertainment streaming platform Eros Now entered a partnership with Vodafone Qatar under which subscribers of the telco will have access to Eros Now's library, which comprises films, original series and music.

* India's telecom department ordered the Registrar of Companies in Delhi and Mumbai to withhold further action with regards to Bharti Airtel Ltd.'s acquisition of Tata Teleservices Ltd.'s consumer mobile businesses as the department has not approved the transaction, according to The Times of India. A source said DoT plans to challenge the deal in apex court on several grounds, including the companies proceeding with and announcing the merger based only on a tribunal order.

SOUTHEAST ASIA

* Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. Ltd. is in preliminary discussions with Singtel and other companies for a minority stake in a virtual banking joint venture in Singapore, The Straits Times reported, citing sources with knowledge of the matter. The Monetary Authority of Singapore is expected to issue the new license applications later in August, the sources said, adding that the joint venture partners may change depending on licensing conditions.

* Singtel Group Treasury Pte. Ltd. issued 10-year notes valued at US$750 million. The notes will have a coupon of 2.375% per annum and will mature in 2029.

* Thailand's Ministry of Digital Economy and Society established a 25-person special commission to oversee its fake news center, which is expected to be functional by October, Siamrath reported.

* Total Access Communication PCL named How Lih Ren its new chief marketing officer, Blognone reported. Prior to joining the company, Ren led the marketing team of DiGi Telecommunications Sdn. Bhd.

AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND

* Nine Entertainment Co. Holdings Ltd.'s Stan struck a multiyear agreement with Paramount Pictures Corp. that will give the video streaming platform exclusive rights in Australia to the Viacom Inc.-owned studio's blockbuster films and upcoming TV series. Paramount Television's "Looking For Alaska" will be the first series to launch, premiering exclusively on Stan in Australia on Oct. 19.

* French marketing company Publicis Groupe SA purchased New Zealand-based independent customer experience agency Affinity ID Ltd. for an undisclosed amount, StopPress reported. The deal will see the agency relaunching as Digitas Affinity ID.

* Uniti Wireless Ltd. completed the share placement and institutional entitlement offer to raise funds for its A$100 million acquisition of LBNCo Pty. Ltd.

FEATURED NEWS

Data Dispatch: Boutique advisers among heavyweights on CBS-Viacom merger: A handful of boutique financial firms appear among the typical banking giants advising on recent media megadeals, including the pending merger of CBS Corp. and Viacom.

FEATURED RESEARCH

Global Multichannel: Global markets update — India: Kagan has recently updated Global Multichannel and Broadband analyses for India, as well as analyses for related operators Airtel, DEN Networks, Dish TV, Hathway, IMCL, SITI Networks and Tata Sky.

Joji Sakurai, Hyegyu Park, Frances Wang, Kevin Osmond and Wil Hathaway contributed to this report. The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 7 a.m. Hong Kong time. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.