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StarzPlay Launches Free-To-Play Fantasy Sports Game In MENA
The game lets players make predictions on live Serie A matches and regional leagues in order to win prizes.
SVOD platform StarzPlay has introduced a new title known as Fantasy Sports in the MENA region, a free-to-play Web3 fantasy sports game.
Launched ahead of the 2023/24 Series A season, StarzPlay Fantasy Sports allows players to make score forecasts and predict possession percentages within the in-game arenas. Successful predictions enable players to win various prizes, including STARZ$, the in-game currency usable for acquiring NFTs.
In the future, the currency will be exchangeable for platform subscriptions, football merchandise, and even Serie A match tickets, complete with meet-and-greet sessions with football icons. While the game is essentially free to play, players have the option to buy and trade NFTs within the real-time marketplace. This empowers them to build distinct teams and boost their predictive abilities.
Alessandro Masaro, Chief Strategy Officer at StarzPlay, said, “StarzPlay Fantasy Sports is the first-of-its-kind blockchain service in the region which will give customers a new dimension to engage with sports while competing to win incredible prizes. Our goal is to make StarzPlay a hub for sports entertainment and provide users and rights holders with more opportunities to interact and build stronger and more valuable relationships. We believe this is the first step of a larger plan which will see StarzPlay Fantasy Sports expand into other leagues and sports in the near future”.
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The release of StarzPlay Fantasy Sports is noteworthy due to the title’s cutting-edge Web3 and blockchain technology. The game uses Amazon AWS as a serverless infrastructure to support the peak of users and provide a stable, high-quality experience during matches.
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UAE Prepares To Launch Two Satellites: Thuraya-2 And MBZ-SAT
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum chaired the first meeting of the Supreme Space Council yesterday.
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE, chaired the first meeting of the Supreme Space Council in Dubai on December 16, 2024. The session highlighted the UAE’s ambitious space plans and took stock of the sector’s economic progress.
The council emphasized the growing role of private companies in advancing space technologies, noting that their contributions are now equal to that of the public sector. Members also praised initiatives like the Space Economic Zones Programme, which are designed to fuel innovation and investment in the space industry.
خلال ترؤسنا الاجتماع الأول للمجلس الأعلى للفضاء، بحثنا الاستثمارات الوطنية والمشاريع المقبلة في قطاع الفضاء والذي يشهد تطوراً مستمراً… وجددنا التزامنا بدعم ومواصلة تنفيذ برامج طموحة لاستكشاف الفضاء الخارجي حيث وصل حجم الاستثمارات في هذا القطاع إلى 40 مليار درهم خلال السنوات… pic.twitter.com/etJ33OnuSu
— Hamdan bin Mohammed (@HamdanMohammed) December 16, 2024
Discussing the UAE’s space journey, HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum remarked, “The national space sector continues to grow and advance, and we take immense pride in the remarkable achievements we have accomplished over the years”.
Sheikh Hamdan also received updates on two upcoming satellite projects: Thuraya-2 and MBZ-SAT. Thuraya-2, developed by Space42, is slated for launch this December. Meanwhile, the MBZ-SAT, created by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), will soon follow. MBRSC, a major driver of the UAE National Space Programme, continues to lead the nation’s space-related developments.
Space42 took the opportunity to showcase its advancements, including ongoing collaborations between public and private entities. The company also outlined strategies to promote innovation, boost revenue streams, and create new opportunities for growth in the sector.
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The UAE’s current projects build on a growing legacy of space exploration. Back in 2020, the nation made headlines with its Mars mission, successfully sending a probe into the planet’s orbit in 2021. This mission, which is now in its second phase as of June 2024, has been collecting critical data to develop a comprehensive diurnal image of Mars.
The UAE also ventured into lunar exploration with an unmanned mission aimed at studying untouched regions of the Moon’s surface. While the probe ultimately crashed during its landing attempt after communication was lost seconds before touchdown, the effort represented a significant step in the country’s exploration ambitions.