Agenda

PANEL DISCUSSION
The Changing Face of Regional Content Production

• Experimenting with new genres
• Addressing the duration and number of episodes with OTT
• Revisiting production models in the wake of consumer data and viewing behaviour patterns
• How have producers adapted their style to suit new commissioning requirements?
• How have business models changed in a multi-platform environment?
• Addressing shorter contract renewal models
• How have evaluation methods changed and how do you greenlight a project?

Moderator: Fadi Ismail, Founder & GM, DKL Studio

Confirmed Panelists:

• Ziad Kebbi, CEO, Blue Engine Studios
• Adil Memon, Executive VP – Content & Marketing, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited
• Safa Abu Rizik, Director of Content, MBC Studios
• Mazen Laham, Founder and Managing Director, Different Productions FZLLC

PANEL DISCUSSION
Growing audiences in a competitive streaming environment

• Content opportunities to attract fans to streaming platforms – sports, niche content?
• Exploring commercial strategies to maximise engagement and viewer retention
• Connected TV (CTV) revenues – discussing multiple monetisation tiers within subscription – AVOD, SVOD, FAST or something else?
• Local streamers versus international players – who has the advantages and how?
• Consumer behaviour and data analytics – how do these dictate what platforms show?
• Does content syndication/distribution cannibalise subscriber growth?

Moderator: Omar Othman, Director Of Strategic Partnerships, Al Aan TV

Confirmed Panelists:

• Danny Bates, Chief Commercial Officer and co-founder, StarzPlay
• Ahmed Qandil, Director of Growth, Brand Marketing and Communications, Shahid at MBC Group
• Sri Hari Thirunavukkarasu, SVP Sales, and Business Head EMEA, Amagi Corporation

PANEL DISCUSSION
Technology as an enabler for streaming (including VOD, Live events, Sports etc)

• The role of technology to enable viewer acquisition, engagement and retention
• Inhouse technologies, managed service or hybrid solutions – what is your choice?
• Can solution providers help OTT platforms provide a better experience with broadcast-quality streaming and minimal latency
• How does the overall product experience help to reduce churn?
• How will emerging technologies like Metaverse, Blockchain, NFT impact the future of streaming?
• How will ad services such as FAST grow in the future and how will monetization evolve in the streaming world?
• What other opportunities are there to cross sell other products to your existing premium subscribers? How do we make that more attractive for a consumer?
• Consumer behaviour and data analytics – Addressing this from a tech POV!

Moderator: Chris Moore, Sales Director, Brightcove EMEA

Confirmed Panelists:

• • Faraz Arshad, CTO, StarzPlay
  • William Sharp, VP of Technology, Intigral
  • Ajay Kumar Meher, Global Practice Head, Media & New Media, Tata Elxsi Limited
  • Damien Lucas, CPO, Ateme

PANEL DISCUSSION
Technologies that should be on a Broadcaster’s roadmap

• Main trends in media technologies today
• How to prioritise technology investments so they are distributed between different platforms
• Ensuring a stress-free and smooth deployment when building or migrating to an IP video infrastructure
• Adhering to standards and understanding SMPTE ST2110 and others
• How are cloud solutions enabling greater workflow efficiencies?
• FAST channels: Would they bring audiences back to traditional viewing?
• Other trends: UltraHD/4K? Software-Defined Networks? Artificial Intelligence? Virtual Production?

Moderator: Hasan R. Sayed Hasan, Managing Director, Master Media

Confirmed Panelists:

• Shabbir Hussain, Director of Engineering and Operations, CNBC Arabiya
• Peter Van Dam, Chief Technology Officer, Saudi Sports Company (SSC)
• Srinivas Kuppa, Head of Technology, Al Mashhad
• Eyad Al Dwaik, Director Of Engineering, Intigral
• Guy Spivack, Regional Commercial Director MENA, Comcast

PANEL DISCUSSION
CEO panel – Developing the regional media sector

• Where do you believe the region’s media (focus on video) sector is relative to its potential?
• Key challenges to address to unlock media growth
• How can we attract international investment?
• How can the various countries’ sectors complement each other for mutual benefit?
• How can we address the talent gaps?
• Is there too much or too little video production infrastructure in the region?
• Will we see a major international OTT player set up a production base in the region soon?
• What has the globalisation of OTT meant for local content production?
• How can policy and regulation level the playing field between international and local players?

Moderator: Karim Sarkis, Partner, Strategy&

Confirmed Panelists:

• • Amanda Turnbull, CEO and co-founder, Rise Studios
  • Markus Golder, CEO, Intigral
  • Maaz Sheikh, CEO and co-founder, StarzPlay
  • Hans Fraikin, Abu Dhabi Film and TV Commissioner, Abu Dhabi Film Commission

Conference concludes