Sky News Arabia, the Abu Dhabi-based 24 hour rolling news channel, concluded its successful participation at this year’s IBC Content Everywhere MENA Conference in Dubai with Head of Sky News Arabia Nart Bouran sharing insights on the impact of innovation on the news industry.
In his opening keynote address on Day 3 of the conference, Bouran used the breakthrough drone technology to provide the audience with a virtual tour of Sky News Arabia’s studios and departments. Explaining how innovation is changing the business of news, he reiterated the importance of embracing opportunities presented by technology and outlined the impact of the internet on the news industry.
Held at the Madinat Jumeirah Arena from January 20 – 22, IBC Content Everywhere MENA Conference focused on the creation, management, delivery and monetization of content across connected devices. Led by regional and international thought leaders with rich experience in launching and managing new products and services that reach and engage the new generation of connected consumers, the discussions offered insights into the converging worlds of broadcast, telecom and IT.
Commenting on the importance of harnessing opportunities to be the first to cover a story, Bouran said: “The MENA region is the world’s fastest growing emerging ICT market with over 60 per cent internet penetration. Nearly 95 per cent of the Arab online community uses social media on a daily basis, predominately via mobile devices. Online users spend over one third of their time watching videos, which offers great opportunities for Sky News Arabia as we are able to tap into these newly acquired habits by using the latest technology and be the first to break stories and engage with our audiences.
“After being on air for more than 30 months, we believe it is important for us at Sky News Arabia to build on our success and enrich the quality of our programming as part of the channel’s organic growth. Some of these improvements are set to be rolled out shortly. We are also in the process of developing leaner, faster, more user-friendly capabilities across all our digital assets.”
Sky News Arabia is a fully integrated rolling source of breaking news using a combination of its HD TV channel as well as advanced online and mobile applications. The channel broadcasts live 24/7 in Native HD in the MENA region and has 20 MENA bureaus, as well as two international bureaus in London and Washington, DC, and access to 10 Sky News international bureaus.