Dubai, 4 September 2013 – Key players in the OTT ecosystem are set to congregate at TV Connect MENA Forum as activity in the online-video sector proliferates and new services continue to come to market in the Middle East and North Africa. With regional content providers and broadcasters already offering consumers intelligent solutions, Dubai provides the perfect backdrop for this year’s event.
TV Connect MENA is the only major TV event in the Middle East and Africa linking key providers in the connected TV delivery ecosystem. 2013’s event promises to give visitors an insight into how to create successful OTT strategies first-hand from major players within the industry. This case-study driven agenda includes presentations from OSN, Discovery Networks, ICFLIX, MBC, Intigral, Ooredoo Group and Dubai Media.
David Hanson, Director of Digital at OSN, will throw a spotlight on OSN Play and share his advice on how to create a digital voice in a traditional pay TV environment. This will include how OSN engaged with their digital audience, how they leveraged existing services to promote the digital experience, and how to strike a balance between innovation and the core business.
The CEO of ICFLIX, Carlos Tibi, will focus on how to build the business case for a pure OTT service in MENA region, and drill down to the importance to offer the right content. He will share his views on how to create a robust go-to-market strategy. Fares Akkad, Head of Distribution and Digital Business Development at MBC, will impart his knowledge and expertise on setting strategic online direction for traditional content providers, which will include an overview of the role of broadcasters in the Connected TV environment and building the business case for online video services.
Ben Kinealy, VP of IPTV and OTT at Intigral, will explore monetising content with the assistance of new technology, while Ed Jennings, Senior Director of Digital Entertainment at Ooredoo Group, will deliver his thoughts on the OTT opportunities within the Middle East. Specifically, this will highlight the success of IPTV in Qatar and the impact of OTT across the MEA region. The line up also boasts participation from Heba AlSamt, Head of New Media at Dubai Media, who will give her advice on launching on-demand services via apps for smart devices, emphasising the capabilities of VoD services and planning for the future with live streaming via apps.
Kasia Kieli, President and Managing Director of Discovery Networks CEEMEA, will present the company’s exclusive research findings from its ‘Rise of the TV Everywhere Audience’ report. Kieli comments: “The overarching headline from the report is that audiences led by the young and early adopters, supercharged by the digital age, show an increasing appetite for the new TV services and these will complement existing viewing behaviours so that conventional linear television will continue to remain the central part of media consumption.”
The 2013 conference and exhibition will take place at the Park Hyatt, Dubai on 5-6 November. To view the full event programme and register for TV Connect MENA 2013, please visit
http://mena.tvconnectevent.com/ or call +44 (0) 20 7017 5506. Alternatively, keep up to date with event news on Twitter @tvconnectevent.
