Dubai Media City

Dubai Media City receives student delegation from George Washington University

editor — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 23:57:58 -0800

A delegation from the George Washington University in the US visited Dubai Media City, a member of TECOM Investments’ Media Cluster, to gain insight into the free zone’s development since its inception 10 years ago.

Jamal Al Sharif, Managing Director, Dubai Media City and Dubai Studio City, welcomed the delegation led by Dr. Salah S. Hassan, Chairman, Department of Marketing and Professor of Strategic Brand Management – School of Business, George Washington University.

The delegation was offered panel briefings and presentations on Dubai’s status as a regional hub. This came in response to the students’ eagerness to understand the current strategies used among all TECOM Investments’ free zone clusters. The discussions that also focused on the multifaceted local, regional and international business interests of TECOM Investments concluded with a tour of the sprawling DMC premises.

Jamal Al Sharif, Managing Director, Dubai Media City and Dubai Studio City, said: “We welcome the visit and interest of the students and faculty from the George Washington University in the unique media ecosystem created by the TECOM Media Cluster. Such collaborations with academic institutions promote innovation and a platform for sharing industry insights that eventually help to meet the needs of the global marketplace.”

This year’s delegation comprised a group of MBA professionals associated with leading Washington-based corporations and government agencies, some of which are working on projects related to Dubai Media City free zone model.

TECOM media cluster frequently hosts student delegations from top-tier international universities that wish to learn more about the regional media hub and the 1,800 companies ranging from global media majors to promising start-ups that operate out of the free zone destination.

Eros Group appoints Blue Apple as its creative and PR agency

editor — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 02:10:27 -0800

Eros Group, the sole distributor of world-renowned brands Samsung, Hitachi, Candy, TCL, BenQ and one of the leading players in consumer electronics, telecom, and allied multi-products in the Middle East has recently appointed Blue Apple as its Creative and PR Agency following a competitive pitch. Blue Apple takes up the post with immediate effect.

Blue Apple presented a refreshing competitive campaign and strategy in sync with Eros Group’s vision and business objectives. The Agency has commenced the roll out of an extensive campaign comprising of Print, Online, Visual Merchandising and PR for all the consumer touch-points across UAE.

Eros Group, a family owned business of Badri Group of Companies that comprises of over 10 companies, each known for its consistency and reliability, markets products and services of highest quality, thus placing the Group as one of the leading groups in the UAE's business community and beyond. The group has a strong team of around 1300 employees with professional experience in various fields. The Group’s Chief Executive, Mr. Deepak J Babani and a team of highly qualified and experienced managers provide direction, executive control and management. Eros’ consistently high quality sales and services of products is a testimony to group’s excellence in business process and employee involvement. It is also reflected in the group’s accreditation to the ISO 9001:2000 Quality Systems.

Mr. Deepak Babani, CEO, Eros Group said, “As we assessed Creative and PR agencies, Blue Apple by far demonstrated a clear understanding of the brief and was the excellent choice to enhance Eros Group’s brand image. I am very excited about the prospect of working with Blue Apple and anticipate a highly successful collaboration.”

Vishal Anand, CEO of Blue Apple concluded, " Eros Group is one of the fastest growing electronics and appliances companies in the GCC and we are excited and privileged to represent them & look forward to joint success and growth."

Based in Dubai Media City, Blue Apple is an independent 'specialist' advertising and PR agency offering innovative solutions on practices of communication, engagement and experience (CEE) based on strategic, creative and management excellence.

Business representatives from key industry sectors attend Du's 4th Customer Advisory Board

editor — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 01:40:35 -0800

Business leaders from key industry sectors converged at Du's head office in Dubai Media City for the telecommunications company's 4th edition of Customer Advisory Board (CAB) meeting. Hosted at the event was Thomas Lundgren, CEO, THE One, who presented an insightful session on Humanology.

During his presentation, Lundgren stressed upon the importance of offering people emotions and experience, than merely products or goods. This is a reflection of Du's own vision for customer interaction; throughout the meeting, Du's executive management highlighted that the intention of having CAB meetings was to better capture the myriad needs and requirements of customers, through dialogue between industry leaders who represent both individuals and their businesses.

"It's really cool that I was invited to address the Customer Advisory Board meeting. I think it's a great idea that Du has established this forum which will help to create a better customer experience across all industries through a better understanding," said Lundgren.

Also presenting at the CAB meeting was Ali Radhi, Head of IT, MBC Group, who discussed the technological challenges faced in an ever-changing marketplace. Other themes on the agenda included discussions on the latest in Managed Services and Vertical Solutions.

"We want to stress that we do not just listen, we do," commented Osman Sultan, CEO, Du. "We strive to translate the issues discussed during the Customer Advisory Board meetings into concrete actions that has a positive impact on our customer experience. By drawing upon the deep knowledge and ideas of so many industry figureheads, we are able to design strategies that offer our customers the best possible experience, which is our aim in everything that we do."

Du established its quarterly CAB meetings in YEAR, in-line with its promise to 'add life to life', both to individuals and to businesses. The first of its kind in the region, the CAB concept comes under the umbrella of the Du Leadership Series, with the aim of bringing together a motley group of industry leaders from top enterprises across all industry verticals.

During each CAB meeting, business-critical topics such industry trends, business priorities and strategic direction are discussed, while the platform also enables to listen directly to customers in an effort to work together for common good. Through this initiative Du connects and engages with customers in a proactive way, while fostering innovation and leadership through a process of discussion and participation in order to contribute to the evolution of the telecom industry -in the UAE, and beyond.

Dubai Studio City explores local content creation opportunities with industry stakeholders at DIFF panel discussion

editor — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 00:37:36 -0800

The five key pillars of the media industry comprise funding of local content production, talent development, infrastructure digitisation and 'smart collaboration' between media and telco players, as well as monetisation of content and the regulatory role of the government, according to Emmanuel Durou, Telecommunications, Media and Telecom (TMT) Director, Deloitte Middle East.

His comment came during a Film Forum held on the sidelines of the 8th Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF).

Themed 'Fostering a Thriving Environment for Local Content', the discussion focused around a special report 'Stimulating the Production and Monetisation of Local Content in the Arab World' that has been compiled with the support of TECOM Investments' Media Cluster comprising Dubai Media City, Dubai Studio City and the International Media Production Zone.

The report is based on private discussions with key players in the telecom and media value chain and examines the current status of the five pillars of the media sector in the MENA region.

Participants at the event including senior executives from the region's telecom and media industries explored local content creation opportunities and challenges facing the Arab media industry.

Organised in association with Dubai Studio City, DIFF is an integral part of Dubai's efforts to establish itself as a global hub for the film industry. Featuring the Middle East's dedicated film and broadcast production cluster as its centrepiece, the event that began on 7 December will run until 14 December.

Durou added: "Over the past 18 months in the region, considerable effort has been placed in funding through governmental seed money, talent development with multiple media training academies and telco-led improvement in mobile and fixed digital infrastructure. However, as ad-funded and paid-for content revenues remain low in the region, a significant task is ahead of us in defining the optimum commercial model for content sales. We also need to ensure better protection and incentives for the owners of rights via adequate media regulation and enforcement."

Moderated by Claire Aguilar, ITVS, US, the session also included as panellist, Meinholf Zurhost, Head of Feature Films, ZDF/ARTE, Germany.

Some of the distinct areas of intervention that were brought up during the seminar included timely roll-out of audience measurement systems, targeted content solutions on satellite, opportunities for co-production, encouraging entrepreneurship, anti-piracy initiatives and local content quotas.

Dubai Studio City also marked its presence at a special session during Film Mart, a distinctive platform for the trade and distribution of films at DIFF, which explored the processes and services required for supporting the burgeoning indigenous film industry and gain increased interest from international production studios.

Elaborating on the exclusive services offered by DSC's Location Approval Services (LAS) department, Jamal Al Sharif, Managing Director, Dubai Studio City and Dubai Media City, said: "The department has helped cement Dubai's status as a major destination for film shoots. Dubai offers a range of location-specific advantages to international filmmakers. We invite professionals to come to the emirate for commercial, television or cinema production, and assure them of the support of our Location Approval Services (LAS) department."

With a sole mandate to issue permissions for filming and photography activities in Dubai, the LAS department offers instant convenience to international filmmakers through expediting and facilitating all aspects of filming in Dubai and the UAE, including location scouting, access of talent, arrangement of visas and organizing affordable accommodations for crew.

LAS data collected over the past years indicates a strong growth in demand for production services. In 2010, the department facilitated 888 film shoots. In particular, the LAS mobilised its capabilities and expertise to provide logistics support to the team from Paramount Pictures for the latest sequel of the action thriller 'Mission Impossible' starring Tom Cruise.

Other projects facilitated by LAS include the Bollywood box office hit 'Dabaang' and the reality show 'Best Friends Forever' featuring famous celebrity Paris Hilton.

Films such as 'Race' and 'Partner' (India); 'Dr Who' series (the UK); 'Amazing Race' (the US); 'Andaleeb Al Dooki' (Egypt); 'City of Life' (the UAE); 'Keif Al Hal' (Saudi Arabia) and 'Dream Boat' (Germany) are some of the popular films that also had LAS overseeing the approval requests.

Rufoof launches operations in Dubai Media City; announces signing 21 contracts with Pan Arab publishing houses

editor — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 00:31:40 -0800

Arab content on the internet is only 4% of the global content, and Arabic e-books constitute a small portion of it. There are just 600,000 Arabic books on the internet, of which only 2% can be read on iPads and smart phones, according to a recent study unveiled at the official launch of Rufoof company, a revolutionary bookstore application developed by Flagship Projects.

The new company was launched at an event sponsored by Tecom in CNN Building in Dubai Media City.

Shadi Hasan, Managing Director, Rufoof, said at the launch, "I thank Tecom for supporting this launch event. Also, I am also grateful for Forbes Arabia, ABM, a franchisee of Apple in the Arab world and Author Diala Areslan for attending the event."

He added, "Today marks a turning point in the world of publishing in the Arab world. Today, we are protecting the legacy of Arabic content from loss by having it in this amazing digital application. $13m was the ebook market in the USA in the third quarter of 2008 and it reached $120m in the third quarter of 2010. It is expected to reach $201m in 2011."

The retail industry of e-books reached $930m in 2010 and it is expected to reach $3bn in five years time in USA alone, according to Forrester.

Talking about the negative aspect of printed books, Hasan added that the annual production of books in the USA requires cutting off 30 million trees.

Rufoof, which started to be developed in mid 2010, has 4500 ebooks, of which 80% are free to be downloaded. Rufoof has signed contracts with 21 publishing houses with a subscriber base of 74,000 all over the world.

He added, "The huge advancement in the world of reading thanks to iPhone, iPad and other smart phone devices is still not fully exploited in the Arab region. Rufoof provides an amazing reading experience for Arabic content. It is a world-class mobile application that adds value to mobile phone end users in the Arab world."

Rufoof is a platform for publishing houses and content driven organisations in the Middle East so they can buy space for their Arabic and English content. They could buy a premium package to publish their books and articles in a special section on Rufoof or just simply post their books individually.

Users of Rufoof store can go to the application and view a wide range of book titles in different categories including articles and e-journals as well as download a sample to have the content available even when the device is offline. Another feature of the application is reading through bookmark pages, search and change the font size as well as change the colour of the shelves.

At the event, Flagship unveiled its innovative iPublishing service which provides power to authors in publishing their own book directly and easily on Rufoof.

The benefits of this service are the international reach, promoting the books without incurring any publishing expenses and presenting an ideal opportunity to authors to generate more revenues.

Through Rufoof, Flagship, the application developer, is showcasing its best expertise and the ability to develop creative professional content for the local and regional market.

Hasan added, "Rufoof provides a user friendly experience adopting the latest platforms at most cost effective price."

du announces official partnership with Dubai International Film Festival

editor — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 01:14:48 -0800

du announced its official partnership with Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) during a meeting, held at the telecommunications company’s headquarters in Dubai Media City. Present at the event was Abdulhamid Juma, Chairman, DIFF, and Farid Faraidooni, Chief Commercial Officer, du.

In its capacity as an Official Partner, du is bolstering its strategy to bring the best in entertainment to its customers, by rewarding the most popular film shown during DIFF with the du People’s Choice Award, as voted for by the UAE community.

“We are pleased to welcome du on board as an Official Partner for Dubai International Film Festival 2011. The du People’s Choice Award will be an exciting category; it will be extremely rewarding for the recipient to know that their film was chosen by popular choice from everyone who watched it,” said Abdulhamid Juma.

Farid Faraidooni said, “It is an honour to be an Official Partner for Dubai International Film Festival, and we’re proud to continue to bring the best in entertainment to our customer family. We are looking forward to presenting an exhilarating celebration of cinema to our customers, and by engaging them with DIFF in surprising new ways.”

Visitors to the VOX Cinemas at Mall of the Emirates to watch movies at DIFF stand a chance to be randomly chosen as the lucky winner of tickets for two to a DIFF movie screening, simply by being in the du film booth designed to make visitors feel like celebrities.

Effective Measure invests in Arab media hub

editor — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 00:48:14 -0800

Effective Measure, one of the leading providers of digital media planning solutions in emerging markets, today announced that it is investing in MENA”s thriving digital media industry with the addition of four new members to the Middle East North Africa (MENA) Business Development team and a dedicated training space in Dubai.

Effective Measure Vice President of Digital Insights, Brendon Ogilvy, said, “Digital media is coming into its own as an exciting, profitable industry. The encouraging growth coming from increased digital ad spend across the region has created a strong demand for reliable market intelligence– including Effective Measure’s.

“As more industry players engage with our products to verify their media strategies, we see a need to equip ourselves with a larger team to cater to our growing client base.

“We were fortunate to be able to pick such strong performers from a great talent pool to represent Effective Measure - Danielle Eamonson, Catherine Moelker, Ahmed Hamza and Dana Masoud.

“With Dubai shaping up to be a significant media hub for the MENA region, we have created a dedicated training space, in Dubai Media City, to educate our clients on how to optimize use of our tools to improve their digital workflow and enhance campaign performance.

“We are in it for the long haul – our team across MENA, as well as in our other international offices, are fully committed to serving the industry and support growth of the Arab media hub,” concluded Ogilvy.

New additions:

• Danielle Eamonson, Account Manager, MENA: Serving the entire MENA region, based in Dubai.

• Catherine Moelker , Business Development Manager, GCC: Serving the GCC region including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE.

• Ahmed Hamza, Business Development Manager, North Africa: Serving the North Africa region including Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia.

• Dana Masoud, Business Development Manager, Levant: Serving the Levant region including Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

Smartphones open new growth avenues for Arabic content

editor — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 00:20:09 -0800

Smart phones have opened new growth avenues and set new trends in e-reading narrowing the digital gap between Arabic and English content, according to senior management from TECOM Investments Media Cluster.

The comment came during the launch of Rufoof, a revolutionary Arabic bookstore application, conceptualised by Flagship Projects, a business partner of TECOM Investments’ Media Cluster. Rufoof was launched on the sidelines of the IP & TV Forum MENA 2011 at a media roundtable hosted by TECOM Investments at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Dubai. Senior management from TECOM Media Cluster as well as Flagship Projects attended the event.

Rufoof has been designed as an online store providing a wide range of titles including books, articles and e-journals. Content can be downloaded to enable access even when the device is offline. Bookmarking pages, search, a variety of font sizes and the ability to change the colour of bookshelves at the online store are some of the features embedded in the application.

Mohammad Abdullah, Managing Director of TECOM Investments’ Media Cluster, said: “Rufoof is a fine example of the growth and proliferation of Arabic content. It is essential to develop and innovate on Arabic homegrown content for users in the region. Developers need to offer the right content and team up with platforms that have the potential to penetrate the market.

“The media cluster is committed to providing young entrepreneurs an environment that encourages innovation through fostering the incubation and realization of inventive concepts.”

Rufoof offers a platform for publishing houses and content driven organisations in the Middle East to make their body of work in English and Arabic available to online users through the purchase of space. Content generators have the option to buy a premium package to publish their books and articles in a special section on Rufoof or simply post their books individually.

With Rufoof, authors and publishers are protected from piracy due to the high security features deployed by a team of software developers.

Shadi Hasan, Managing Director, Rufoof, said: “E-books have gained popularity due to the increasing proliferation of the iPhone, iPad and smartphone devices in the region. Rufoof provides a new reading experience for Arabic content users. It is a world-class value-added mobile application unique to the Arab world. The time is right for every publication house to create digital versions of its content to gain wider reach and easy accessibility, and Rufoof is delighted to lead by example.”

Flagship Projects, a leading developer of mobile applications in the Middle East, is poised to increase its share in the coming years. Through Rufoof, the application developer is showcasing its best expertise and the ability to develop creative professional content for the local and regional market.

TECOM Investments’ Media Cluster – Dubai Media City, Dubai Studio City and International Media Production Zone – offers business friendly regulatory frameworks and a state-of-the-art infrastructure. Its support of industry events comes as part of its long term objective to build a knowledge base for the benefit of stakeholders in the media sector.

du brings Manchester United fans even closer to their favourite team

editor — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 03:47:41 -0800

As part of its partnership with Manchester United Football Club, du held a ceremony to launch special club-related content at its head office in Dubai Media City. Former Manchester United captain, Gary Neville, was present for the event.

Starting December 2011, du customers will now have even more ways to connect with the club, with the availability of Manchester United content and an exclusive Manchester United SMS subscription service.

“We are pleased to be able to bring our customers even closer to their favourite team.. This is an exciting occasion for us, as this iconic partnership between du and Manchester United marks our synergistic approach to bringing those people most important to us – our customers and fans – the things that add extra value to their lives,” commented Farid Faraidooni.

Richard Arnold, Commercial Director for Manchester United, commented on the launch: “We are proud of our partnership with du and hope to bring the Old Trafford experience to our fans in the UAE. Manchester United is fortunate enough to have fans all over the world and it is important to us that we build partnerships, like the one have with du, to enable us to become more accessible to those fans.”

Through Manchester United content, fans will have access to downloadable content through Myworld, including videos of match highlights and interviews, wallpapers, ringtones and much more for just AED1 per day, simply by SMSing ‘MU1’ to 9059.

To receive SMS alerts with all the latest news, updates, scores and more, du customers can SMS ‘MU2’ to 9059. This service is charged at AED5 per week.

du announced its partnership with Manchester United at GITEX Technology Week in 2011. The two-year contract will bring du customers even closer to the team, with exclusively-assigned content, competitions to win souvenirs and match tickets, and more.

Convergence of technology and media to expand opportunities for sector and region

editor — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 09:48:04 -0700

The convergence of technology and media will open doors to a number of opportunities and cross leverage expertise. Adoption of latest solutions and the availability of new forms of media have helped drive this convergence, concur top executives from TECOM Investments' Media Cluster and Dubai Internet City (DIC).

The comment was made at the IP & TV Forum MENA 2011 and Digital TV Middle East 2011 that drew the support of the TECOM entities. Organised by Informa Telecoms and Media, the two events were held from 1-2 November at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel in Dubai.

Dubai Internet City was the official ICT partner at the IP & TV Forum MENA 2011 for the third consecutive year, while the Media Cluster comprising Dubai Media City, Dubai Studio City and International Media Production Zone was the main sponsor at Digital TV Middle East 2011.

The IP & TV Forum MENA showcased the latest developments in the TV industry and provided a high profile networking platform. The event annually attracts decision makers from regional and international operators, satellite and cable providers, as well as content aggregators and broadcasters.

The Digital TV Middle East 2011 focused on the investment opportunities in the region guiding investors on the potential areas of growth in the evolving digital TV landscape.

The telecom and media industry has witnessed a phenomenal growth as the number of IPTV homes in the Middle East and North Africa has shown a steady increase. Subscribers are predicted to rise ten-fold and expected to touch 1.6 million by 2014 at a penetration rate of 2.1 per cent, according to Informa Telecoms and Media.

Similar growth is observed in the TV industry across the Middle East and North Africa, with DTH (direct to home) satellite making a huge penetration in the region. Over 60 per cent of the 80 million TV households are currently receiving TV via DTH satellite, according to Informa Telecoms & Media.

Malek Al Malek, Managing Director at Dubai Internet City and Dubai Outsource Zone, said: "The IP&TV Forum MENA 2011 comes at a time when technology convergence is witnessing immense growth in the region with the latest innovations and applications requiring high bandwidth and infrastructure support. Telecom operators are also making investments in upgrading infrastructure and offering a wider range of value-added services to meet local requirements and fuel further growth across the region.

"Dubai Internet City remains committed to the telecom industry through hosting the presence of global technology companies including AT&T, British Telecom, Verizon and Cable & Wireless. In our enabling role as engines of industry growth, the IP&TV Forum MENA 2011 gave us an opportunity to map trends and interact with path-breaking technology players."

TECOM Investments' Media Cluster participated in a panel discussion on the first day of the event focusing on 'Developing a Content Creation Industry in the ME Region'. The seminar examined the broadcasting industry outlook and the Media Cluster's role in providing the infrastructure and other enabling services to companies.

Mohammad Abdullah, Managing Director of TECOM Investments' Media Cluster, said: "The creation of local content is possible only by providing a conducive environment, tools to innovate, as well as access to information and experts. As the Media Cluster plays an integral role in such an environment, we have provided incentives to encourage the local development of content. The presence of leading international media brands has also spurred the growth of several home-grown companies.

"Digital TV provided a platform to these companies to interact with investors and gain a deeper understanding of new technologies and the regional broadcasting scenario."

At the forefront of the region's ICT industry, Dubai Internet City remains committed to supporting emerging technology trends in the region and continues to play an instrumental role in developing the industry while contributing to Dubai's drive for creating a knowledge-based economy.

TECOM Investments' Media Cluster - Dubai Media City, Dubai Studio City and International Media Production Zone - has evolved dramatically through offering business friendly regulatory frameworks and a state-of-the-art infrastructure. Its support of industry events comes as part of its long term objective to build a knowledge base for the benefit of stakeholders in the media sector.