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doesn ’ t crack the 10 million subscriber mark . And in case anyone wants to quibble with the arithmetic let ’ s please not include Türkiye and Israel in these numbers as they are very different and separate media markets despite geographic proximity .” FAST . However , there ’ s a new kid on the world ’ s broadcasting map , in the form of FAST channels ( Free Adsupported Streaming TV ). This reinvention of ad-supported broadcast TV ought to be no surprise , says Lakos . “ FAST channels are an obvious evolution for OTT platforms , but let ’ s up the ante on this topic and consider our perennial scourge of piracy getting turbo-charged with Chat Locally GPT . Already for the past produced film three or four years the ‘ Within Sand ’. pirates have been offering their customers thousands of illegal streaming channels along with pretty much unlimited VoD libraries . As a consumer proposition they offer a massive variety of content , but they do a terrible job of organising and packaging it in a way that really fits the needs of their target consumers . To be blunt , their ability to illegally acquire and distribute content far surpasses their knowledge of exactly what content ticks the boxes and how best to present it to consumers here .”
“ Ask Chat GPT to set up a series of FAST channels highly tailored to small niches in each country and my guess is that the piracy product will become significantly more appealing to consumers . Not what this region needs right now , but tell me what ’ s to stop it ?”
Lakos also raises the hugely important flagship NEOM project in Saudi . “ NEOM definitely wins the award for most ambitious media production project . I guess my question is can we really separate the discussion about media production from the discussion about media distribution and consumption ?” REVENUE . He says there is a food chain of revenue flows that start off with revenues generated from viewers and ends up feeding the studios and their stars . “ Box office sales , pay-TV subscriptions ( whether OTT or traditional linear ), or advertising ( whether linear terrestrial , satellite , AVoD or FAST .) Hollywood wouldn ’ t be Hollywood without their take from US box office , their split
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with cable TV operators , and the advertising industry that funds the content on broadcast TV . To transform media production in the Arab world we need a value chain which links consumer satisfaction with production profits . Failing that any success will be tenuous .”
But NEOM could be a significant game changer for the MENA region . NEOM is part of the Kingdom ’ s much-publicised ‘ The Line : City of the Future ’, a spectacularly ambitious project for the next few decades and arguably the world ’ s largest and most controversial architecture project . But if you look at how Dubai has developed over the past 20 years it is not impossible to image a similar success for The Line .
NEOM forms part of the Saudi Vision 2030 plan to diversify the country . NEOM encompasses an area of around 10,200 square miles ( 26,500 square kilometres ) in northwestern Saudi Arabia . This is around the size of Albania . The area is bounded by the Red Sea to the south and the Gulf of Aqaba to the west . INCENTIVES . The NEOM project has announced considerable production incentives ( 40 ++% cash rebate for all TV and Film production ), with four sound stages in place with full production support plus backlots . NEOM says that 25 productions have wrapped in the past 18 months “ on time and on budget ”. The temptations include low-cost 5-star hotel accommodation for on-screen talent and crew ,
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and guaranteed sweeping deserts , pristine coastlines , and beaches within an hour or two ’ s drive .
The target is clearly intended to rival Dubai and Egypt ’ s giant Media Production City outside Cairo . Each are very well-developed in terms of production facilities . NEOM hosted a visit of 120 industry VIPs to celebrate the opening of its latest Sound Stage . Wayne Borg ( who once headed up TwoFour54 ’ s media hub in Abu Dhabi ) is now MD for the Media Industries , Entertainment & Culture segments at NEOM , and talks about the new venture having a target 450,000 people resident by 2026 , and 1.5-2m by 2030 and eventually 9m by 2045 .
The NEOM guests came from Saudi Arabia , North America , Europe , UAE , Turkey , India and Morocco . It is believed to be one of the largest ever single industry gatherings to visit the country . It commenced with all experiencing NEOM ’ s extensive production facilities and then some of the stunning potential from the region ’ s locations across its vast and varied landscapes . SUCCESS . Borg said : “ The event was a huge success . The response from industry attending was overwhelming . Our ability to attract the numbers and calibre of industry leaders we had at NEOM for our event demonstrates our offering is resonating and is competitive on the world stage . Everyone experienced first-hand our rapid and dramatic build-up in capacity and capability reflecting the seriousness of our intent and ability to compete across the value chain internationally . The showcase also celebrated the opening of NEOM ’ s second purpose built , industry standard , 2,400m ² sound stage at its Media Village .”
NEOM will mount a $ 300 billion cashraising fund in 2024 , with half already coming from the Kingdom ’ s sovereign wealth fund . In other words , Saudi ’ s powers that-be are serious about the Mega-city ’ s prospects and while media and entertainment will be just one portion of the dream , they are seen as key .
Which translates into the MENA region ’ s continued optimism in terms of its creative ability . Few doubt that by CabSat 2024 there will be other success stories to report .
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