The changing face of pay TV in MENA

BeIN Media Group has remained a quiet player for a long time. Over the years, it has quietly amassed a large number of premium sports rights, the English Premier League being one of the most significant, and raked in the subscribers. Its most recent move into the entertainment space has been a lot more aggressive. Furthermore, the men on the top have rarely made a public statement. I am so delighted to announce that beIN chose to break its silence by accepting to do an exclusive interview with BroadcastPro ME.

Yousef Al Obaidly, Deputy CEO of beIN Media Group, has not shied away from the questions we have asked. In fact, he has been candid in this interview, sharing beIN’s strategy for the year and beyond, its business model, some impressive numbers and the next steps for the network.

And would such an interview be complete without getting OSN’s side of the story? We have heard from Dave Butorac, CEO of OSN, on several occasions – but again, in this issue he outlines OSN’s USP and what will differentiate his offering from that of others in the pay TV space. I enjoyed doing both interviews, because at this juncture, the arrival of a second titan into the MENA pay TV space is likely to rewrite some of the patterns we are accustomed to seeing around FTA channels as well as pay TV packages. To bring these interviews to our readers in such a special month, when the whole of the Arab TV world comes down to Dubai for CABSAT, is indeed a coup.

Speaking of CABSAT, we are equally delighted to announce that for the second year in a row, CABSAT has appointed us their official media partner. We have aimed to do justice to that title by bringing you exclusive news, interviews and features from across MENA.

See you at the show!