Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum awards Sheikh Waleed al-Ibrahim for his achievements over last 25 years
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, today awarded MBC Group chairman Sheikh Waleed Al-Ibrahim the award of ‘Media Personality of the Year’.
The honour was part of the Arab Journalism Awards, held at the culmination of the 14th Arab Media Forum in Dubai.
It marks Sheikh Waleed’s quarter-century of achievements in the media industry, which is considered one of most dynamic and creative sectors, as well as his leading position as trustee over the biggest private Arab media group.
In a brief statement at the awards ceremony, Sheikh Waleed paid tribute to the significance of the award. “It’s a major part of a professional leading platform – the Arab Media Forum in Dubai,” he said.
Sheikh Waleed said Dubai was a “majestic, modern and leading emirate led by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, and which is in the heart of the United Arab Emirates, known for its spirit of leadership, teamwork and sharp vision.”
“The award’s importance also comes from the fact that we are on the cusp of a phase of rearranging priorities so that media outlets and different means of communication keep pace with events, and seek to deliver the complete picture to the audience and thus contribute to the formation of public opinion,” he said.
Sheikh Waleed added: “The challenge before us lies in the extent of our capability to benefit from the technology and information revolution, in order to continue enhancing the media, cultural and renaissance march of our nation, economies and societies.”
He concluded: “I offer this Media Personality of the Year award – which I proudly and honorably receive from Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum – to all employees in the Arab media sector in general, and to all MBC Group employees in particular and who, each from their own platform over 25 years, contributed to upgrading the Arab media to world-class status.” (Source: MBC press release)
Arab Satellite Communications Organization “Arabsat” is partnering with Arab States Broadcasting Union “ASBU” in organizing and sponsoring the 16th edition of the Arab Festival for Radio and Television from 11- 16 May in Hammamet, Tunisia. The event is attended by more than 600 media figures from all over the Arab world.
Eng/Khalid bin Ahmed Balkheyour, President & CEO of Arabsat, said: “Arabsat has enjoyed a strong and historical relationship with ASBU for more than 30 years. We are commercially involved with them in many projects, such as the global Arabic bouquet which is considered one of the most successful joint Arab projects in the field of radio and television, for its technical, economical and practical benefits. “MENOS” is widely known as the fastest and the largest network for exchanging multimedia content over satellites. It is intended primarily for the professional TV broadcasters, allowing them to share video and audio material throughout the Middle East, North Africa and Europe. We are also working closely together with ASBU in many relevant committees to coordinate between satellite TV channels, and to combat deliberate jamming and piracy of satellite broadcasting, and the infringement on ownership rights in relation to production.
Balkheyour added that “The Arab Festival for Radio and Television is a remarkable media gathering in the Arab world where we can meet our customers and get acquainted with their needs, aspirations and their future expectations, which is vital for us in order to provide the best satellite services to them.” (Source: Arabsat press release)
SES partners with I DO IT Co., LTD., to showcase the SelfSat>IP antenna at SES Industry Days
SES S.A. (NYSE Euronext Paris and Luxembourg Stock Exchange: SESG) is showcasing the first commercially manufactured Ku-band flat antenna with integrated IP-LNB at its annual Industry Days. The antenna is produced by Korean manufacturer I DO IT Co., LTD., and will soon be available in major European markets.
Its small size of 566x300mm means that this new antenna can be discreetly installed where standard parabolic antenna may not be suitable, such as apartment blocks in cities. Versions with an integrated WiFi router are also available for the camping market.
The SELFSAT>IP antenna is compliant with the SAT>IP communications protocol and incorporates eight satellite tuners. It enables the distribution of live HD and UHD satellite broadcasting through an in-home WiFi network and can serve up to eight different displays (smartphone, TV, table PC, laptop computer, etc.) simultaneously. With two legacy coaxial outputs in addition to its IP output, the antenna can also be connected to existing satellite receivers.
“For several years I DO IT has pioneered the development and mass production of high performance consumer Ku-band flat antennas for worldwide markets,” said Seung Joon IM, CEO at I DO IT. “Thanks to the collaboration with SES, we are now able to integrate the SAT>IP technology into our antennas. This enables live satellite television distribution via WiFi to tablets and smartphones, an important product feature especially for the camping market.”
“Today over 40 manufacturers are developing products that are compatible with the SAT>IP standard and we are very pleased to support I DO IT in their endeavours,” said Thomas Wrede, Vice President, Reception Systems at SES. “These developments were strongly driven and supported by the annual SES Industry Days and would not have been possible without joint industry efforts. We continue to leverage the advantages that satellite communications offer, shaping our industry and creating a high performance, sustainable ecosystem.”
Journalism has never been more dangerous and journalists have never felt more unsafe, according to the findings of a major report published by the International News Safety Institute.
Under Threat: The Changing State of Media Safety provides an in-depth, multi-media look at the main changes in the journalistic safety landscape over the past decade. It does this through more than 30 interviews with journalists who work in some of the world’s most dangerous places and the news executives who make the difficult decisions to deploy them.
These interviews were supplemented by a survey of nearly 200 media workers around the world and 10 years of INSI statistics on journalist casualties, revealing the most deadly countries to be a media worker.
“In 2003 we published Dying to Tell the Story, which paid tribute to those journalists killed in the early stages of the Iraq war. After witnessing the horrific murders of our colleagues in places like Syria and Iraq, the insecurity in Ukraine, and the rampant impunity that accompanies the killings of most journalists, INSI felt compelled to look at how different media safety was from a decade ago,” said INSI Director Hannah Storm.
“In an industry under threat from so many different sides, we wanted to know what the main changes and challenges were and what if anything had stayed the same. The results of our research were substantial and deeply sobering.”
The INSI report reveals that:
Journalism has never been more dangerous, and journalists have never felt so unsafe.
Terror groups are using new technologies to control the “information battlefield” and have declared war on journalists.
The frontlines in places like Syria and Iraq have become unclear, meaning journalists don’t know who to trust and where they can go safely.
For their part, news executives aren’t sure who to turn to for information and help when reporters go missing or get hurt in today’s chaotic conflicts.
Technology helps journalists deliver their messages, and in some situations is keeping them safer, but makes them increasingly vulnerable to the powerful entities that seek to track and harm them.
The advent of user-generated content has blurred the role of journalists and confused the industry and general public alike.
Audiences more than ever expect to be instantly and accurately informed about even the remotest corners of our world – pushing journalists into ever more dangerous places.
In the wake of the well-publicised cyber attacks on Sony Entertainment and TV5 Monde – together with a range of other less-discussed attacks – that have seriously impact broadcasters’ operations, AIB is working on high-level meetings for its Members to share knowledge and to discuss possible solutions to this major threat.
“Broadcasters are natural targets for hackers and others who seek either to disrupt programming and social media, or to hijack the airwaves to distribute propaganda,” said Simon Spanswick, chief executive of the Association for International Broadcasting. “We have received an unprecedented response to our proposal for discussions on this subject and we’re now developing an initial one-day knowledge-sharing meeting for AIB Members and a number of specially-invited experts.”
The inaugural AIB meeting on cyber security and disaster recovery will take place towards on 6 October 2015 in London, co-hosted by Deloitte. The high-level, invitation-only meeting will be strictly confidential to allow sharing of knowledge among AIB Members and to help focus the minds of board-level executives including CEOs and CTOs. A range of experts from a number of key organisations involved in protecting critical national infrastructure assets will share their knowledge as AIB leads the conversation to ensure the security of its Members.
For more information about this initiative, please contact us.
The Association for International Broadcasting is delighted to announce that the eleventh AIBs – our annual search for the best in factual TV, radio and online media – are open for entry.
With categories covering journalism and documentaries, children’s and science, and many more, this festival will celebrate the world’s most outstanding content.
Full information on how to enter is on the AIBswebsite and you can read the entry booklet here in a special digital page-turning edition. If you’d like a printed copy of the entry booklet, please contact us.
“We’re looking forward to another great competition after last year’s record-breaking festival,” said Simon Spanswick, chief executive of the AIB. “Over the past decade, the AIBs have attracted the most remarkable content from broadcasters and production companies around the world. In 2015, I expect we’ll see even more outstanding content from every part of the world, particularly since the AIBs are open to work in any language. This is a truly international competition that’s respected around the world.”
You can get a flavour of the 2014 AIBs in our showreel:
Entries can be submitted up to the closing date of 22 July 2015.
In the wake of the well-publicised cyber attacks on Sony Entertainment and TV5 Monde – together with a range of other less-discussed attacks – that have seriously impact broadcasters’ operations, AIB is working on high-level meetings for its Members to share knowledge and to discuss possible solutions to this major threat.
The Association for International Broadcasting is delighted to announce that the eleventh AIBs – our annual search for the best in factual TV, radio and online media – are open for entry.