KUALA LUMPUR: A new streaming service from Bitsmedia (developer for Muslim Pro), Qalbox, has officially launched in Malaysia.
The service is available within the Muslim Pro app via a 2-in-1 subscription and it consists a global Muslim-focused titles that focus on the global Muslim community, showcasing diverse representations of Muslims from the Americas and Europe to the Middle East and Asia.
Bitsmedia's co-chief executive officer, Nik Emir Din, said its varied content not only represents the diverse Muslim community but also entertains users with various global titles.
"We have five key propositions. Number one, we celebrate the beauty of Islam and the Muslim Culture that is needed in this day and age. We also want to inspire global communities through entertainment and embrace the Muslim identity. Also, we represent Muslims in the real world and we talk about how diverse the communities are and our role is to bridge together the communities," he said.
"Muslim representation in media is important, and so is empowering Muslim storytellers with a platform to tell their own stories. Given our global user base, we're thrilled to be able to help shine a light on locally produced Malaysian shows with audiences all over the world and we hope to introduce even more Malaysian productions in the future," he added.
While focusing on Malaysia as its key consumer market, Bitsmedia is expanding its local presence via investment from Bintang Capital Partners and Penjana Capital.
Qalbox has partnered with local content distributors like Astro, Pixel Play, and Nads Media to showcase Southeast Asian content.
CELEBRATING MUSLIM CULTURE
Seeing that only 1 per cent of TV characters are Muslims, despite its large global population, Qalbox aims to address this by showcasing Muslim identities and culture.
The service also plans to support Muslim content creators and content like Maz Jabrani; Pandemic Warrior (Highpoint Productions), Little Mosque on the Prairie (Westwind Pictures), Burka Avenger (Inocorn Black Studios), and Quranic recitations and supplications (dua).
Qalbox will also be producing its original content such as the I am Muslim series that can be streamed on Dec 1, 2022.
Users can access ad-free Quran reciters, hours of films, documentaries, kids' programmes, etc.