MBC’s Shahid strengthens partnerships across MENA region, achieves 3.5x growth in 12 months

9 May 2023

MBC’s Shahid strengthens partnerships across MENA region, achieves 3.5x growth in 12 months

Shahid, the world’s leading Arabic streaming platform powered by MBC GROUP, announced today its continuing success story on partnerships across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), which has led to a 3.5x growth over the past 12 months. Shahid’s strong and dynamic partnerships across various industries – including telcos, device manufacturers and other brands, banks, and airlines – have been key in driving growth and expansion.

TELCOS

Starting with telcos, Shahid has partnered with over 30 telecommunication operators across the region to date, offering smart and easy mobile billing for subscribers. Additionally, Shahid has agreements in place with 12+ partners so far that bundles complimentary Shahid subscriptions along with core mobile plans.

Major telcos to have partnered with Shahid include Saudi’s STC, Egypt’s Vodafone, and Orange Morocco. Not only do the partnerships focus on special deals for Shahid subscribers, but they have also resulted in creating exclusive experiences for telcos clients. For example, in November 2022, Vodafone RED customers in Egypt were given the exclusive opportunity to be part of the private screening of the Shahid Originals production, “Room 207”. Meanwhile, this January saw Orange Morocco supporting the launch of “Casa Street”, the first Moroccan series produced for Shahid Originals through various experiences and activations for viewers.

DEVICE MANUFACTURERS

During the past 12 months, Shahid announced partnerships with major device manufacturers in the region to bring exclusive bundles and subscription offers to customers. They include Samsung, LG, Elaraby, Sony Interactive Entertainment’s PlayStation, Hisense, and OPPO.

BRANDS

Shahid has also formed regional partnerships with Talabat, Anghami, Noon, Mastercard, Al Rifai and Careem, focusing on running co-branded subscription campaigns.

BANKING & PAYMENT PROVIDERS

Part of Shahid’s continued growth has been thanks to its ongoing facilitation of payment options for a highly diverse region. It expanded its payment methods through e-wallets, launching with Egypt’s Paymob and Vodafone Cash.

Shahid has also launched a variety of prepaid cards in 100+ retail distributors across 15 countries, including via Fawry, Jarir, Virgin Megastore, Sharaf DG, and Like4card.

As for recent banking agreements, Shahid has formed regional partnerships with Arab Bank and Emirates NBD Egypt.

AIRLINES

And finally, one major partnership to have been announced over the past year was that of Shahid joining forces with Emirates to offer premium content exclusively onboard its award-winning inflight entertainment system, ICE.

Announced in July 2022, the collaboration made Emirates ICE the only platform in the world – aside from the streaming service’s own premium-subscription online platform – to offer access to highly popular titles by Shahid Originals.

At time of debut, all Emirates customers enjoyed access to an extensive selection of over 135 hours of Shahid content from 15 programmes.

Commenting on Shahid’s growth in partnerships, Natasha Matos-Hemingway, Chief Commercial and Marketing Officer at Shahid, stated: “We are delighted with the growth and expansion we have achieved over the past year, and we attribute much of our success to the strong partnerships we have formed across the MENA region.

“We look forward to continuing to strengthen our relationships with our partners, and delivering compelling storytelling, innovative digital offerings, and lifestyle experiences to our subscribers and fans.”

MBC GROUP is the largest and leading media company in the MENA region.

[Source: MBC press release]

NHK WORLD Monthly Focus: Hiroshima

2 May 2023

NHK WORLD Monthly Focus: Hiroshima

Hiroshima, a journey to global peace

I’m Still Here: An A-Bomb Victim Speaks May 12 Fri. 14:30/20:30/3:10/10:10 May 16 Tue. 19:00 (UTC) In this program we join Hiroshima atomic-bombing survivor Keiko Ogura as she engages residents of a small US town in discussion on the dilemma posed by nuclear arms.
ISSEY MIYAKE May 27 Sat. 1:10/7:10/13:10/19:10 (UTC) The Human Inside the Clothes Issey Miyake, the world-renowned clothing designer, died in 2022 at the age of 84. Interviews with those who knew him provide insight into what inspired his captivating designs.
Hit the Road May 31 Wed. 1:30/6:30/12:30/17:30 (UTC) The Michi no Eki, or way stations, on Japan’s road network provide a place to rest and sample regional specialties. Join us as we begin exploring these appealing spots by experiencing delicious local fare and warm hospitality in Hiroshima Prefecture.
J-FLICKS May 6 Sat. 1:10/7:10/13:10/19:10 (UTC) Close-up: Berlin International Film Festival Join presenter Sarah MACDONALD and guest Alexander ZAHLTEN of Harvard University as they look at four captivating Japanese films that have attracted attention at international festivals this year. Director SHINKAI Makoto’s animated feature Suzume and KUMAKIRI Kazuyoshi’s thriller #Manhole were shown at the Berlin International Film Festival, while FUNAHASHI Atsushi’s The Burden of the Past featured at the Asian Film Festival in Osaka. SAKAMOTO Junji’s Okiku and the World, meanwhile, was shown at the International Film Festival Rotterdam.
Asia Insight Fridays 0:30/5:30/10:30/15:30/21:30 (UTC) Dynamic Asia. Stories behind the world’s largest continent as it faces political, economic, cultural and technological change.

VOA names new Latin America Division Director

21 April 2023

VOA names new Latin America Division Director

The Voice of America has selected Sandra Thomas-Esquivel as the new director of its Latin America Division, providing news and information to audiences throughout Latin America as threats to freedom of expression, political instability, drug trafficking, organized crime, violence and corruption continue to plague the region.

A native of Mexico City, Thomas-Esquivel has extensive experience in leading complex news teams and has dedicated the last 25 years of her career in television and journalism to serving the Latino community in the U.S. and Latin America. As Univision’s Senior Director of Local and Affiliate News, she supported strategic initiatives for all Univision Television Group news departments across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. As Vice President of News for Telemundo 39 in Dallas, she oversaw the station’s news department as well as local productions across multimedia platforms. As Telemundo Network News Bureau Chief for Mexico and Central America in Mexico City, she led a team of correspondents, producers and video crews. She joined Voice of America in 2019 as chief of the Spanish language service.

In 1994, Thomas-Esquivel received an Emmy® from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for a network special about poverty-stricken Latino children in the U.S., and in 2005, the California Chicano News Media Association honored her for her career achievements in broadcasting and for her many years of mentoring young journalists. That same year, she received the “Trailblazer Award” from American Women in Radio and Television.

She holds a master’s degree in international journalism from the University of Southern California and Bachelor of Arts degrees in journalism and radio, television and film from the Instituto Latinoamericano de Comunicación Educativa (ILCE-UNESCO) and the University of Maryland.

“We’re excited to see Sandra permanently appointed to the position of Latin America Division Director, as she has been in this role for a while in an acting capacity,” said Acting VOA Director Yolanda Lόpez. “She has excelled in guiding VOA’s activities in the very diverse Latin America media market and advancing her division’s relationship with the large number of VOA’s affiliate stations in the region.”

Sandra Thomas-Esquivel’s appointment is effective as of April 23, 2023.

[Source: VOA press release]

USAGM releases statement re conviction of Vietnamese blogger

13 April 2023

USAGM releases statement re conviction of Vietnamese blogger

CEO Amanda Bennett (pictured) released the following statement regarding the conviction of Radio Free Asia contributor Nguyen Lan Thang.

Nguyen was sentenced to six years in prison by the Hanoi’s People’s Court on charges of spreading anti-state propaganda. The charge against him came under Article 117 of Vietnam’s criminal code, which is often used by authorities to suppress free speech on social media.

This conviction brings the total number of USAGM network contributors jailed in Vietnam to six. Others held include Nguyen Tuong Thuy, Truong Duy Nhat, and Nguyen Van Hoa from RFA, and Le Anh Jung and Pham Chi Dung from Voice of America.

CEO Bennett statement:

“The sentencing of Nguyen Lan Thang in Vietnam strikes yet another blow against free speech and freedom of the press in Vietnam.

For nearly a decade, Nguyen Lan Thang shared timely and prescient perspectives on freedom, democracy, and human rights with the Vietnamese audience of Radio Free Asia.

I join the chorus of international voices calling on the government of Vietnam to drop all charges and immediately release Nguyen Lan Thang.”

[Source: USAGM press release]

BBC World Service launches “Dars” – the first multi-platform education series for Afghan children barred from school

3 April 2023

BBC World Service launches “Dars” – the first multi-platform education series for Afghan children barred from school

BBC World Service is launching the first series of an education programme for young audiences in Afghanistan. From Saturday 1 April, the new BBC News Afghanistan satellite channel will broadcast Dars (“Lesson”) – a TV and radio series in Pashto and Dari, to bring learning to children not at school, including girls aged over 11 barred from formal education. The series will also be available via BBC News Pashto and BBC News Dari radio, BBC Persian TV broadcasts, and online.

The programme’s commissioning editor, BBC World Service News Controller Fiona Crack comments: “As the global public service broadcaster, it felt only right that BBC World Service stepped in to adapt and use the BBC’s world-leading education content, as well as our journalism, to help children excluded from school, particularly girls. We want to offer a topical, learning-based programme in Afghan homes, and we hope Dars will inform and inspire its young audience.”

The presenters of Dars – the BBC’s Shazia Haya and Malaika Ahmadzai (in Pashto), and Aalia Farzan and Sahar Rahimi (in Dari) – fled Afghanistan, following the country’s takeover by the Taliban.

Shazia Haya says: “When I am working on this programme, I picture myself as a 16-year-old, and I wish there was a TV programme such as Dars back then… I hope that, as they study with the help of our programme, they also learn that they should not give up on education.”

Aalia Farzan adds: “Sometimes I ask myself, if I were a teenage girl in a country where I can’t go to school, wouldn’t I be very happy if someone helped me, if someone came and taught me? It’s such a privilege for me to be able, through Dars, to encourage people to choose their own life. I want to help them believe that one day you can choose what you are going to be.”

Tailored for 11 to 16-year-olds, Dars makes the most of the BBC’s teaching content with adapted maths, history, science, and Information and Communications Technology modules from BBC Bitesize, the BBC’s online study support resource for UK school-age pupils. BBC Learning English lessons will be split into two sections, for lower- and higher-stage learning. Dars will also bring its young audience current-affairs and inspirational stories from BBC World Service’s multilingual global content and from the World Service’s 100 Women series.

The first 12-week series of Dars will air four times a day, Saturday to Friday, on the newly launched BBC News Afghanistan channel. The half-hour programme will also be available via BBC News Pashto and BBC News Dari Facebook channels, on radio – through the network of BBC FM transmitters in Afghanistan as well as on shortwave and medium wave – and will be part of the BBC Persian TV channel schedule.

BBC News Pashto reaches a weekly audience of 8.3 million in Afghanistan while the weekly reach of BBC News Dari in the country is 4.3 million (BBC Global Audience Measure 2022).

The BBC News Afghanistan satellite channel brings together BBC World Service’s multilingual offer for Afghanistan, with BBC News Pashto, BBC News Dari, and BBC News Uzbek TV and radio content as well as the BBC Persian TV programming.

Image: Presenters: Sahar Rahimi, Shazia Haya, Aalia Farzan, Malaika Ahmadzai (Robert Timothy/BBC)

[Source: BBC World Service press release]