TV ratings – finally!

Oct 26th, 2008   

Last week, The National reported on the long-delayed media initiative dubbed Project Illumination – the effort, under way for eternity and a day, to install TV ratings boxes in Arab family homes so that advertisers can know precisely who’s watching what and when.

It’s a staple in more developed markets, but it’s never happened in the Arab world (except for Lebanon) for various reasons. Those reasons aren’t worth going into here, but let’s just say it has a lot to do with the fact that too many of the major players in the Arab media industry just don’t get along too well.

The latest news is that Dubai Media City is involved with the project. That might give it some additional steam in the UAE. After all, probably another reason it’s difficult to get such cross-industry initiatives off the ground in this part of the world is that so little happens here – in business, as in any sphere of life – without government involvement. And “people meters,” as the system is dubbed, is primarily a non-governmental initiative. Call it a “civil society” project, albeit one that’s mainly aimed at improving the livelihoods of big advertisers, rather than everyday people.

So that suggests progress. The UAE is not the market that matters most, however. Saudi Arabia is. The project there, which is being handled jointly by market researchers AGN Nielsen, Ipsos and Pan-Arab Research Centre, has hit a snag as it waits for a license from the Saudi government to go into people’s homes and install the boxes.

But even when they are installed, industry experts are skeptical about the validity of the results. Media planners and buyers who know how things work on the ground in Saudi say they won’t trust the data even when it does arrive, claiming that the sample size is too small, and that it is not truly representative of Saudi households.

Such is the level of pessimism that many agencies will continue to trust their own research, even after the much vaunted arrival of people meters. So much for a common media currency.

 

http://www.kippreport.com/kipp/2008/10/26/tv-ratings-–-finally/

The great shift

Oct 28th, 2008    Austyn Allison

 Lebanese broadcasting big-hitter LBC Sat is readying to move its advertising sales in house, taking the lucrative contract away from Arab media sales giant Choueiri Group and giving it to LBC affiliate Rotana Media Services (RMS).

 An employee at the RMS office in Dubai appeared to confirm the report on Thursday, saying the company was not releasing any official statement yet but was preparing a press release related to the matter. Executives were not immediately available for comment and a message requesting confirmation of the report went unanswered.

 LBC and Choueiri officials in Beirut also did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

 Sources say the deal will commence in January 2009. LBC Sat is one of the leading TV channels in the Arab world, broadcasting hit shows such as Star Academy throughout the Middle East and North Africa – although Saudi-owned MBC Group, the dominant broadcaster in the region, has taken an increasing market share in recent years.

 When LBC Sat and Rotana Group, both of which have a lead shareholder in Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, announced a merger in 2007, the companies hailed it as the formation of a new Arab “media conglomerate” even while remaining “organizationally and financially” independent. Since then it has been unclear to what extent the two companies would share resources or if the merger would even last.

 Rotana is already 100-percent owned by Alwaleed, who is a shareholder in Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. In July, Alwaleed boosted his stake in LBC to 85 percent with a capital increase of $78 million, a move that signaled intent to further the integration of his media businesses. Giving LBC’s advertising sales to a Rotana unit would further fortify both the horizontal and vertical integration of his investments.

http://www.kippreport.com/kipp/2008/10/28/the-great-shift/

Dubai TV vs Abu Dhabi TV

Dubai TV and Abu Dhabi TV are battling to get a bigger share of Arab audience, thus gaining exposure on behalf of the emirate they represent. While Dubai is widely considered the region’s media hub, Abu Dhabi is going out of its way to become a serious contender. And the stakes have become higher with Abu Dhabi TV’s recent revamping.

Pan-Arab ambitions and more

Launched in 2000 and part of the government-backed DMI (Dubai Media Incorporated) network, Dubai TV caters to the family segment of the Arab audience, broadcasting mostly Arab-speaking programs, predominantly produced locally. The fact that since 2004, it is represented by Choueiri Group’s Mems also contributed to its strong regional presence.

At one point, Abu Dhabi TV, which went on air in 2000 and is owned by Abu Dhabi Media Company (ADMC), had been trying to attract pan-Arab audiences by offering them a combination of news, politics and entertainment. But with the advent of Al Jazeera in 2003, down the drain went Abu Dhabi TV’s former grid. And perhaps that was a smart move: Al Jazeera made a name for itself with its successful coverage of the Iraq war, but the war soon became morbidly routine.

But for the past few months, Abu Dhabi TV has been going full-throttle with its plans to become a major pan-Arab contender, sparing no efforts. Earlier this year, it poached LBC’s deputy manager Karim Sarkis and made him executive director, while former Disney International executive Ed Borgerding was hired as chief executive of ADMC. Its prime-time schedule has been shifted, a clear sign … that the station intends to break away with the common habit of giving priority to Saudi Arabia: “We used to air (prime time shows) at 10:30 p.m., which is what everyone does to align with Saudi (Arabia),” said Sarkis. “However, prime time will now begin at 9 p.m. in the UAE. In the UAE, it’s not fair to ask people to stay up later.”

New looks

Abu Dhabi TV’s recent revamping may give it another serious push. Indeed, the new branding and positioning (Abu Dhabi Al Oula for the flagship channel, Abu Dhabi Al Emarat for the local channel, Abu Dhabi Al Riyadiya for sports, under the umbrella of mother brand Abu Dhabi TV) are clear references to its Emirati roots. The new logo, an ancient dhow sailing vessel, also emphasizes this sense of belonging.

Four years ago, when it replaced Emirates Dubai Television with a more upbeat format, Dubai TV had been subjected to a similar overhaul costing an alleged $100 million. New studios were built, others were upgraded and a 600 square meter sports studio was acquired.

And ahead of many competitors, DMI’s station had also strengthened its presence by signing a multi-year free TV programming deal with Warner Bros. International Television Distribution and by launching over 20 programs produced locally, plus an additional half dozen exclusive serials for Ramadan. It appeared to be aware that content was its key asset.

Content wars

Abu Dhabi TV learned from its competitor. Not only did it give its look a complete makeover, it also generously invested in content. “The Million’s Poet” and “The Prince of Poets” were hugely successful, … drawing audiences to the station’s revamped grid. Production giant Endemol, the Dutch television company behind the popular Big Brother reality series, inked its first deal last November with reality-TV heavyweight gamer “Ton of Cash,” which has aired since the beginning of October. Shows “Top of the Flops” and “Divided” (due in May) followed. Local Abu Dhabi Al Emarat should also get a new focus soon, with more shows produced locally.

Thanks to these successive strategic moves, Abu Dhabi TV has jumped in Arab satellite channels rankings from 20th to seventh or eighth in just a few months, according to Endemol Middle East head Ziad Kebbe.

To add insult to injury, ADMC’s station just launched a new channel, Plus One, right in time for Ramadan. By running the same program as Abu Dhabi TV one hour later, ADMC wants to attract viewers by offering them the chance to watch its programs while breaking their fast.

But Dubai TV isn’t watching idly. For Ramadan, it struck back by airing “Siraa Ala Al” (Struggle In The Sands), an 18th-century epic based around the poems of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and produced for a regional record-breaking $6 million. It also acquired from Endemol a 13-episode run of “The Kids Are Alright,” slated to debut in May.

Both stations are poised for a serious bout of arm wrestling. But the question remains to whether, being so closed tied to their own governments, they are fit for survival in an increasingly competitive environment.

http://www.kippreport.com/kipp/2008/10/22/dubai-tv-vs-abu-dhabi-tv/

Media Research Institutes, Universities, Scholarships, Scholars

Arab Media Centre

African and Arab Media Audiences: Shared Agendas for Research' ... the Communication and Media Research Institute (CAMRI) at the University of Westminster, ...
www.wmin.ac.uk/mad/page-1447 - 16k

Middle East Media Research

Stanhope has been actively researching the rapidly changing landscape of Middle Eastern media for over a year. Among our projects are the Iraq Media Developments Newsletter; a comprehensive policy recommendation for the restructuring of Iraqi media policy; and studies from the Media Development Paper Series.

http://stanhopecentre.org/2007/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=27&Itemid=38

Center for Middle East, CMES offers a wide range of programs and activities about the Middle East with the goal of increasing awareness and understanding of the region, both historically and in contemporary perspective. I, and the Center's staff, look forward to meeting you at our events and hope that you will become a lasting member of our community. 

http://cmes.hmdc.harvard.edu/

The American University in Cairo

http://www1.aucegypt.edu/academic/cej/

Center for Media and Communication Studies (CMCS)

CMCS has emerged as a center of excellence for promoting media and communication studies throughout the Central and Eastern European region. Based at the Central European University (CEU) in Budapest, it conducts cutting-edge research and provides expertise which is valuable for academia, NGOs, policy-makers and regulators http://www.cmcs.ceu.hu/

London School of Economics

The Department of Media and Communications

http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/media@lse/

The Annenberg School for Communication at University of Pennsylvania

http://www.asc.upenn.edu/research/

http://www.asc.upenn.edu/prospective/GraduateApplyOnline.aspx