Al Jazeera to preview new English International service at Media and Marketing Show 2005

Al Jazeera International is part of the Qatar-based Arabic channel's bid to improve penetration into the English-speaking world and will commence operations from 2006. It will be run from Doha in the Gulf state of Qatar, using material generated from its new office in London and bureaus in Doha, Kuala Lumpur and Washington.

"Al-Jazeera is looking to consolidate its presence not just in the region, but also on the global stage, and is planning to increase the reach of its broadcasting by launching a new English-language service. Al-Jazeera will have a consolidated presence at the upcoming Media and Marketing Show to demonstrate the diversity of its programming services," said Hedi Smirani, Head of Marketing, Al Jazeera Sport. "Al Jazeera is not only a premier source of objective news, but also provides quality entertainment and sports broadcasts that cater to a wide range of audiences and enthusiasts."

Al-Jazeera became a global force in news broadcasting during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, when its ability to report events in the Middle Eastern domain from an Arab perspective contrasted with the difficulties faced by other media organisations.

Since announcing plans to open a London office and launch its English-language service, Al-Jazeera has signed up a number of staff from the BBC, ITV and Sky News to join the station. Sir David Frost, veteran interviewer whose BBC show Breakfast with Frost ended earlier this year, is understood to have been signed up by Arabic satellite television news channel Al-Jazeera for its new English-language service.

Other major regional media players participating in the upcoming Media and Marketing Show 2005 include MEPRA, Khaleej Times, Dubai Media City, Jacobsons, Orient Planet, Saatchi and Saatchi, Fortune PromoSeven, BBC World, Dubai Television, Gray Business Communications, ITP Consumer, The Economist, Dubai Radio Network, Flip Media, Canon Middle East, CDP, Dom International, Media Factory, The Concept Group, AME Info, Biz Events, Gulf Air, General Motors, Blue Ocean, Les Affichages Pikasso, Connector Publishing, DIT Publishing, Infinity TV and others. Further information about the exhibition can be found at www.dubaimediashow, the official website for the Media and Marketing Show.

"The Media and Marketing Show 2005 has the specific aim of bringing together the various forms of media in order to facilitate the interchange of best practice and the development of business liaisons. While most industries have representative trade shows, the media and marketing industries in the Middle East region have still to come together in cohesive display under one roof. The Media and Marketing Show aims to address this gap by bringing diverse media and marketing sector players, ranging from advertising agencies, branding consultants, business and consumer magazine publishers, online media, radio and television networks, call centres, CRM specialists, daily newspapers, designers and directory publishers together to a business platform this November," commented David Domoney, Managing Director, THE DOMUS GROUP, organizers of the show.