2007
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Barclays to sponsor tennis tournament
Barclays Bank has signed a $9m deal with Dubai Duty Free, the owners and organizers of the Dubai Tennis Championships, to sponsor the tournament for the next three years. The announcement marks Barclays first foray into professional tennis sponsorship globally and is seen as a major endorsement of the Dubai Duty Free-run tournament which began in 1993 and has grown into a fortnight of world-class tennis.
New financial resource in works
The Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) Authority and Bloomsbury Publishing have announced a multi-year agreement to produce 'Qatar Finance - The Ultimate Resource,' a new banking and finance information resource and its online version www.QFinance.com. Scheduled to launch in autumn 2009, the 1.5 million word database aims to meet the information and business needs of the finance community worldwide and provide a unique online forum for finance professionals.
Virgin Radio Dubai launched
Virgin Radio International and the Arab Media Group (AMG) have signed an agreement to launch Virgin Radio Dubai, an English language music station, towards the end of this year. The station will be run as a collaboration between Virgin and the AMG, with Virgin providing particular input into programming, marketing and promotions. Virgin Radio has recently been launched in France and Italy and further Middle East launches are being considered.
Al Jaz English to Indonesia
Astro Indonesia and Al Jazeera English have completed a carriage deal which will see the Qatar based news channel being broadcast in Indonesia. Astro will show Al Jazeera English on channel 39 on its DTH platform and it will be available as part of a basic content package, alongside other news channels. Astro has been showing the channel in Malaysia since last November.
ATV Internet broadcasts
Jordanian TV channel ATV, which was barred from broadcasting by the kingdom's Audio Visual Commission on July 31 just prior to its launch, is to transmit content via the Internet using ikbis.com. ATV will initially place pre-recorded programmes which were part of its planned launch on the website. ATV will continue to supply content to ikbis.com once it has been given permission to commence its broadcasts.
Al Jaz Sport hits 1m
Qatar's Al Jazeera Sport has revealed it has now clocked up more than 1m subscribers since it was launched in 2003. The channel has acquired a variety of TV rights including the Qatari, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Argentinean, Portuguese and Japanese football leagues. Al Jazeera also possesses the rights to English, Spanish, French and German cup competitions.
Gulf Pulse hits 100
Zee TV's Gulf Pulse, which is produced in Sharjah and caters to the Asian expatriate community in the Middle East, has now clocked up 100 episodes. Gulf Pulse first went on air in October 2005 and covers regional news stories including subjects such as tourism, ecology, real estate, business and national politics. The programme is hosted by Bhavna Radhakrishnan and airs at 1.30pm on Fridays.
New monthly magazine for Bahrain
A new monthly magazine being launched in Bahrain promises to be the most reliable publication about life in the kingdom. FACT Bahrain, an acronym of Fashion, Arts, Culture, Technology, is committing itself to editorial integrity as well as offering international standards of design, said editor Arran Dall, who has edited publications in Bahrain, Dubai and the UK.
Emirates to sponsor AC Milan
Emirates, the Dubai-based airline, has signed a deal to be an official sponsor of AC Milan, one of the most successful football clubs in the world. Emirates signed the three year sponsorship deal at the AC Milan training ground and the familiar 'Fly Emirates' signage will now be displayed at AC Milan's San Siro stadium.
Egyptian editor faces probe
An Egyptian prosecutor will question Al Dustour's editor-in-chief, Ibrahim Essa, about articles that raised questions about the health of Egypt's leader, reported the Associated Press citing an anonymous judicial official. The move is seen as the latest attempt by the government to dispel rumors that President Hosni Mubarak is ill. Essa faces allegations of 'causing a public disturbance and harming Egypt's economy.'
UAE ads given poor marks
Advertising in the UAE lacks originality and relevance, according to a survey of 1066 UAE residents by YouGovSiraj. Over half of the respondents (55%) said advertising is not original, while 71% believe only a small percentage of advertising is relevant to them. 'Millions of Dirhams are being wasted on advertising that could be improved if creative concepts were tested in advance,' said Nassim Ghrayeb, CEO of YouGovSiraj.
Citruss TV inks deal with MBC
After an initial 3-month cooperation in 2006, Saudi Arabia's home shopping network Citruss TV has confirmed a one year deal with MBC to broadcast its TV shopping shows on MBC4 daily from Saturday to Wednesday 12-1pm (KSA). Michael Truschler, director of Citruss TV, said home shopping is becoming increasingly popular in the region.
Dubai convention bookings up
The Dubai Convention Bureau has booked 12 major conferences in the first six months of this year, 50% more than the last year and 20% more than the target set for H1 2007. Awadh Seghayer Al Ketbi, DTCM Executive Director Heritage and Convention Division, said the conferences are expected to attract over 25000 participants to Dubai, thereby benefiting the emirate's booming tourism and hospitality sectors and strengthening Dubai's status as destination of choice for global meetings.
Satellite ad rates hold steady
Despite a recent dip, Gulf satellite TV advertising rates are considerably higher than their terrestrial and pay TV counterparts, according to a study by the Arab Advisors Group. The average advertising rate for a free-to-air satellite TV channel in the Arab world is $3,698 for a 30-second advertisement during peak time. Arab satellite TV advertising rates dropped between 2004 and 2005, but appear to have been steady between 2005 and 2007, the report found.
Annahar launched in Kuwait
The first issue of new Kuwaiti Arabic daily, Annahar, was published yesterday, Sunday, reported the KUNA. The newspaper is the country's ninth Arabic daily and the fourth to be rolled out since the country's new press and publications law was endorsed in 2006. Annahar features local and international political and economic stories and its Editor-in-Chief is Imad Bukhamseen.
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