“ The UAE continues to be an attractive destination for media .”
‘ behind the scenes ’ control seem to be ending .
LANDSCAPE . Hasan R . Sayed Hasan , managing director , Master Media , a wellplaced broadcasting insider says : “ The increasing visibility of Saudi Arabia in the media landscape could certainly have implications for Dubai ’ s position as the regional media capital . However , Dubai ’ s status as a hub for media and entertainment has been built on a diverse range of industries , including TV Broadcast , TV Production , events , film , music , advertising , in addition to news and journalism . Major Saudi-owned media organisations are indeed gradually moving to KSA , albeit at a much slower pace to what I believe the Saudi ’ s would like to see . This is due to a combination of logistical aspects , the availability and timely access to adequate physical , telecom , and other infrastructure elements , and also in reality the reluctance of many people working within these organisations , with long-established lives in Dubai , to relocate to KSA . This move will eventually happen over the next two to three years , and I think many organisations have no alternative than maintaining dual operations , one in Dubai and another in KSA , regardless which one they call ‘ HQ ’.
OTT on rise in MENA
Hasan explains his view , saying : “ While MBC and other Saudi-owned media entities , including Al-Arabiya ( MBC ’ s news arm ), and Asharq mandated move to Riyadh could be seen as a loss for Dubai because of the large scales of their operations there , the UAE continues to be an attractive destination for media companies and investors due to its business-friendly environment , welldeveloped infrastructure , and diverse talent
Ophélie Boucaud , senior analyst at Dataxis , says that the Arab MENA TV and video market have shown significant transformations over the last few years . The footprint of traditional pay TV accesses has stabilised while video streaming is skyrocketing in the region , both in value and volume . 2022 thus marked the first year where video subscription and advertising video streaming services revenues combined surpassed the pay-TV market in value .
“ Of course , the region is marked by high disparities between markets , with a strong geographic breakdown between the Maghreb , Levant countries and the Arabic Gulf . In GCC countries , we observe a strong penetration of premium services both for connectivity and entertainment , higher ARPUs , and a large adoption of connected devices in the household . Some of these markets also have unique demographics , like Kuwait or Qatar which are inhabited by a majority of expatriates and non-nationals ,” she says .
“ To be able to respond to each country ’ s needs , local media and entertainment companies are adopting differentiated market strategies . Pricing is one lever on which service providers adjust their offers to local circumstances : since Disney + launched in the region last June , its service is priced around $ 8 in Saudi Arabia ( 29.99 SAR ) but only around $ 3 to $ 3.5 in Maghreb ( 399.99 DZD in Algeria , 33.99 MAD in Morocco , $ 3.49 in Tunisia ). Another key differentiator for local implementation is striking distribution deals with telco operators . In markets where mobile connectivity is the main Internet access , deploying mobile-focused entertainment offers is crucial .”
“ The subscriber count of DTH and IPTV combined in Arab MENA is capping at around 4.4 million households . Meanwhile , fixed pay TV ARPUs took a significant hit due to growing competition from cheaper OTT services . The monthly ARPU of paid satellite TV services dropped by one-third in the last 3 years alone . The stagnation of traditional pay-TV access in volume and this drop in revenues has been mostly impacting OSN and beIN , the two historic satellite TV providers in the region . Both have been pushed into transitioning towards OTT services , with a strong focus on their streaming products , respectively OSN + for the first one and beIN Connect and TOD for the latter .” pool . Recent examples are the launch of new TV networks and digital media hubs from Dubai such as Al-Mashhad and Blinx . com . In the TV broadcasting domain , I do not see , at least in the short to medium term , media organisations relocating to KSA or establishing new operations there other than for Saudiowned organisations or if forced to have an operation there to be able to work with the Saudi government . This also applies for the broadcasting support ecosystem such as media technology vendors , systems integrators , and service providers . The UAE , and especially Dubai , will stay the business hub for the GCC region and beyond in various industries , and particularly for the media broadcast sector .” EXPANSION . The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is pouring multiple-billions into spectacular new cities , and looking ahead many generations in terms of the nation ’ s expansion and diversification away from carbon . The highly publicised ‘ NEOM ’ is the new city in the Northwest of the Kingdom and where the country is offering all manner of UAE-type financial incentives for production in TV , Film and Music .
Shahid is already a powerful force in the Kingdom and wider region . MBC says it has more than 3m Shahid subscribers and is working towards 4m . Importantly – and a considerable investment for MBC – is the hiring of Christina Wayne , formerly of AMC , as their head of original scripted programming . Wayne joins MBC as head of its Studios arm . MBC Studios is now investing hundreds of millions of dollars in high-end productions in Saudi Arabia as part of the ongoing effort to help kickstart the Kingdom ’ s nascent production sector . In her new role , Wayne will continue MBC Studios ’ ongoing work in expanding the reach of its content to audiences around the world , leveraging the continuous trend for non-English-language television content to reach more global markets . DEMAND . Hasan says there may be different outcomes for media in general and in particular film and drama for the wider region . “ The Kingdom ’ s large and young population with very high content consumption is creating great demand for locally produced content for all platforms and media distribution outlets . In addition to the Saudi Government ’ s initiatives for supporting local productions through the 40 per cent cash rebate production incentive scheme for feature films , TV , and commercials , producers are granted even further incentives from media production hubs within Saudi Arabia such as NEOM media village and Al-Ula Studios . Film production
“ FTA DTH is still the overwhelmingly dominant form of video delivery ”
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