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MBC secures Warner shows
MBC Group has signed a multiyear extension of its programming output with and Warner Bros. International Television Distribution. MBC will have first-run access to all new TV shows distributed by Warner from 2008-2009, 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 US television seasons.
GCC governments cover 8% print ad spend
According to a Mediastow study for the first two months of 2009, government expenditure on print advertising constitutes 8% of the total spend in the Arab world. The group believes that this reflects a continued change in marketing as governments approach advertising from a private sector viewpoint.
Team Y&R wins Aujan project
Team Y&R has been appointed by Aujan Industries to work on its new master brand development project for fruit drink Rani. Team Y&R's new campaign for Rani will launch on May 1. Rani is one of the region's most successful fruit brands, with a turnover of $400m in 2008.
Abraaj buys stake in Mediaquest
Private equity firm Abraaj Capital has bought a stake in Dubai-based Mediaquest Corp, which publishes 17 titles including Trends, Communicate and The Kippreport online. The investment is the firm's first acquisition in a media company, James Cordahi, senior vice president for corporate communications at Abraaj, told Bloomberg. Abraaj has not revealed the size or value of the stake.
MBC to finance films
Badih Fattouh, Director of Group Content at MBC, a free-to-air TV channel in the Middle East, said the network is moving into financing and commissioning films. MBC's first such venture was financing a short film called The Circle, made by a renowned Kuwaiti film maker, which was also shown to a select audience at the Gulf Film Festival, held in Dubai recently, reported Emirates Business.
Khaleej Times dissolves its board
Khaleej Times, the oldest UAE English daily newspaper, has dissolved its board of directors, reported Emirates Business. The new board was appointed a year ago after Investment Corporation of Dubai took 30% stakes in Galadari Brothers, publishers of Khaleej Times. The newpaper's CEO Didier Brun said the board was put in place to relaunch the newspaper and has done its job now.
Google asked to reject Dubai censorship
The Doha Centre for Media Freedom has written an open letter to search engine Google, asking it to reject censorship proposals by Dubai police. The Doha Centre's letter was in response to talks between Google and Dubai police regarding possible restrictions on available searches.
Saudi Arabia bans 'illegal' TV decoders
Saudi Arabia is planning to ban 'illegal' Pay TV decoder boxes from use within the kingdom, which will include them being imported into the country. Government officials said the move will reduce piracy in Saudi Arabia and protect intellectual property rights, as consumers will only be allowed to use sanctioned services and products such as Showtime and its equipment. HE Abdul Rahman Al Hazzaa, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Culture and Information, said: "The Kingdom is taking a strong stance against piracy because it compromises religious values, weakens the economy, tarnishes the country's image and hurts consumers."
Du ends Jiwin representation
MS and L have released a communiqué announcing their appointment as Du's public relations agency. 'We will be releasing a joint press release on the announcement in a couple of days,' Du's public relation manager told Emirates Business. Du had previously been linked with Jiwin Public Relations for the past two years.
Dubai TV launches emirate everyman show
Dubai TV has launched a weekly programme focusing on the emirate from the perspective of the 'average Dubai resident'. Called Dhel Al Kalam (Shadow of the Words) and hosted by Majid Mohsen, the makers say it will follow up on the most prominent event of the week.
MBC signs Warner Bros deal
Gemma Yates, MBC4 and MBC Action channel manager, said that the group had signed a major deal at the beginning of the month with Warner Bros to gain exclusive access to all Warner series produced up to 2011, including shows like The Terminator, Fringe and The Mentalist which will be aired on MBC Action starting this month. 'We literally have access to all their shows. Anything produced by them over the next three years will come to us,' Yates said.
Mediabrands CEO to lead Lions jury
Nick Brien, President and CEO, Mediabrands will be heading the 56th Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival Media Lions jury. 'Not only is it one of the largest juries at Cannes, but also a formidable one assembling some of the world's top media minds,' said Philip Thomas, CEO of the Festival.
Honda cancels PR contracts
Honda Middle East has said that it is discontinuing the services of U-Communicate, its public relations and events management company so as to be able to avoid any redundancies amongst their own staff. In a formal communication to media houses Honda informed them that it will communicate directly through its in-house communications team to minimize costs, despite being pleased with the services of U-Communicate. The company's decision involves all GCC markets. Arijit Basu, Assistant General Manager, Honda, said the company had no major events that required agency support, so there was no point in bearing additional costs.
AMG wins graphics awards
The international jury members of the 17th Malofiej International Infographics Awards in Spain, awarded Arab Media Group four silver and bronze medals. The awards were all in the features category and included one silver to Al Bayan for its Olympics 2008 infographics, one bronze to Emirates Business for its 'Final Voyage of QE2 graphic' and two bronze medals to Emarat Al Youm for 'Al Fahiri Fort: Pearl of Dubai' and 'Falconry: The Noble Sport' graphics.
Arab Media Forum site launched
Maryam Bin Fahad, Executive Director of Dubai Press Club has announced the launch of the website for the upcoming eighth Arab Media Forum www.arabmediaforum.ae, which will be held on May 11 and 12 at The Atlantis Hotel, Palm Jumeirah, culminating with the Arab Journalism Awards on the second day. 'The website will serve as a source of continuously updated information on the forum and the programme details, besides facilitating participation from media persons across the spectrum,' she said.
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