Despite the setbacks due to Covid-19, this year has been favourable for regional brands, be it MBC announcing Shahid's soaring popularity or the UAE launching its Mars Mission.
It is always a matter of great pride to see a homegrown brand succeed in a field, where international players with more money and power are also part of the game. That success is often the result of great leadership, a smart strategy and a strong tech team to back that grand vision. Shahid is a fine example of that. No doubt, its parent company MBC Group has been always been a strong player in the traditional broadcast space, but this year belongs to Shahid.
The streaming service has picked up incredible speed following a major revamp earlier this year.
The OTT platform has served as the launch pad for several original productions and more recently, feature films as well. But all of us know by now that good content alone does not a streaming service make. Ensuring a fantastic consumer experience by keeping latency and buffering down to a minimum, and ensuring a user can pick up a programme from where they left it off last all contribute to reducing churn. On that front again, Shahid has scored several brownie points with its viewers.
The addition of a new private CDN will further strengthen that bond between the streaming service and the consumer.
Our cover story this month is a big testimony to what can be achieved on home ground by local players if they have the ambition, the capital and the right resources.
Undaunted by Netflix and Amazon Prime, Shahid has forged ahead in the MENA market, building on its key USP — Arabic-language programming. In parallel, it has also enhanced its entertainment experience thanks to an incredibly gifted technology team that has ensured a service that is on a par with other market players.
On another note, we are equally in awe of the UAE for successfully launching the Hope probe into space last month to collect scientific data about Mars. We bring you details about the coverage of the event.
We hope these regional stories serve as an inspiration during these challenging times. Until next month …
