To build a more profitable TV industry in the Arab world, we need more responsible behaviour from the major players.
It’s a well known fact that the Middle East now has more than 470 free-to-air channels. It’s an equally well known fact that besides the MBC Group, very few TV stations in the region’s FTA market actually turn a profit. In fact, it would not be inaccurate to conjecture that at least 70% (if not more) of the region’s TV advertising budget lands in MBC’s coffers.
At a recent debate initiated by The National newspaper in Abu Dhabi, three of the UAE’s current largest TV players – MBC, Orbit Showtime Network (OSN) and Abu Dhabi Media Company (ADMC) – were invited to discuss how TV revenues could be improved in this market, along with media buying agencies. Several issues came to light at the debate.
It was alleged that media buying agencies in the Middle East amassed a much larger cut of the advertising pie than would be permitted in international markets because of the lack of a regulator to police them.
It was also alleged that as some research companies were owned by media buying agencies, viewership statistics were manipulated in favour of clients (broadcasters) for whom the agencies were the exclusive agents.
Several other malpractices were also brought to light at the debate. It became clear that unless media operators forgot their differences and worked together, no one would benefit in the long run.
One person who vociferously condemned such practices was OSN CEO Marc Antoine d’halluin, the man who engineered the merger between Orbit and Showtime. d’halluin is well known as a turnaround specialist and has often expressed frustration, in the past, at the inability to compete in a market, where players do not compete on equal terms.
In an exclusive interview with BroadcastPro Middle East, d’halluin discusses why OSN had to close down its Bahrain facility and the challenges of operating in a market that is not just replete with FTA channels but also devoid of legal regulations to thwart piracy and other malpractices.
This debate is significant to the Middle East television industry as the inability to generate revenues could eventually drive broadcasters out of business or deter them from investing in high-quality content or new technologies. This combination of reasons is said to have compelled ART to withdraw from a portion of the pay TV market in the region.
The Middle East requires an independent body comprising representatives from major media organisations, who can sit together and come up with a set of rules that will allow for fair play and punish offenders. This is the way forward if we must survive.
