Al Aqariya to build AED 500 million Media Complex in Dubai Studio City

The media complex, which will be home to Al Aqariya's headquarters, will also include massive television studios, a media centre and a commercial facility. The facility will be built over an area of 29,000 sq. feet.

"Dubai Studio City is the perfect location for Al Aqariya's headquarters as it offers the ideal supportive environment for our venture," said Mohammad Saleh, Chairman of Al Aqariya Group. "Our facility will benefit from the close proximity of other companies from across the film and TV production value chain in Dubai Studio City."

""The first phase of the project will have the region's biggest television studio with a total area of 900 sq. ft. The second phase will have a unique media centre, the first of its kind in the region. The project will also include a commercial facility, details of which will be announced later," Saleh added.

"We are happy to have Al Aqariya, the leading real estate-focused channel in the Middle East, at Dubai Studio City," said, Dr. Amina Al Rustamani, Executive Director of Media, TECOM Investments. "Al Aqariya has exhibited dynamic growth since setting up recently in Dubai and we look forward to supporting their growth."

Al Aqariya's media complex will feature state of the art technology that enables synchronized transmission of 32 channels. An additional 20 production units will be built by the group at an investment of AED 111 million.

The group's first venture, Al Aqariya TV, which started airing on 17 December, 2004, provides features news and other programmes on the real estate sector. Al Aqariya reaches over 150 million homes across the Middle East, North Africa and Europe, and is looking to diversify its programming in the near future.

Apart from the television channel, Al Aqariya also publishes a number of publications dedicated to real estate and construction.