'Arab Media in the Information Age' conference gets of to a rousing start

In his presentation, Mr. Julfar outlined an informed perspective on the current scenario in terms of enriching Arabic content on the Internet with an insight into the challenges from social, technical and cultural contexts. His presentation also included a recommendation on future roadmap for increasing the representation of Arabic content on the Internet.

From a content perspective, Mr. Julfar stressed that the Internet was just a delivery mechanism with content being the key for driving increasing Arabic representation on the Internet. He also gave examples of the growing influence of Internet supported media outlets such as aljazira.net and bbcarabia.net to show the influential nature of the medium. From a Internet penetration perspective, he commented that the Arab world has a penetration of only 2 % and lacks in Internet penetration as compared to a country like the US . He also gave the audience a perspective on the vibrant media scene in the UAE and the dynamic nature of the media environment in the Middle East which was increasing in number every day.

In terms of issues facing Arabic content on the Internet, Mr. Julfar commented on the limiting nature of censorship and its influence on casting doubts about the reliability of regional news media which in turn was shifting consumer preferences to international networks and the Internet. He stressed that reportage should move further beyond spectacle and should be relevant in order to retain a sense of credibility and attract Middle East audiences.

The limitations of the Arabic language in encompassing new business, financial and technology terms was also limiting the growth of Arabic content in addition to problems caused by bad translation. To circumvent these problems and the lack of quality content, Mr. Julfar recommended that private players should be invited to play a bigger role with financial incentives to attract them.

Having taken into account the problems limiting the spread of Arabic content on the Internet, Mr. Julfar then took the audience through his recommendations on future measures to solve these problems starting with the establishment of an Arabwide authority on language development which would develop regional efforts to incorporate new business, ICT(Information & Communication technologies) and scientific terms into the Arabic language. On the technical side, Mr. Julfar commented on the process of Arabisation of domain names which is close to becoming a reality with entities like UAEnic(United Arab Emirates Network Information Centre) who are working with counterparts in Saudi Arabia and Qatar to develop domain names in the Arabic language.

Mr.Julfar urged regional governments to promote the Internet and make it affordable to all with a relaxation on censorship efforts. He outlined a comprehensive programme to involve content providers with tax holidays and incentives and recommended the use of local publishing, content management and upcoming translation technologies to speed the process of Arabising this content. The role of the younger generation and their involvement with the Internet through improved Internet access in schools including broadband access and increasing the number of high technology institutions was also recommended by Mr.Julfar.

In closing he recommended the development of a fundamental 'eco-system' made up of all the involved players to bridge the digital divide in the Arab world and make the process of Arabising content on the Internet a success.