Kaswara Al-Khatib, chairman of the most prominent Saudi Arabian online media platform on YouTube and one of the top MCNs (Multi-Channel Networks) of the Middle East and North African (MENA) region: Uturn Entertainment, has been ranked as the first in Forbes Middle East’s list of the Top 100 Entrepreneurs Shaping Saudi Arabia’s Future as of December 2015 (source: forbesmiddleeast.com).
Uturn Entertainment, a powerhouse platform for the production and distribution of original and creative Saudi content and based in the City of Jeddah, was first established in 2010. It has since successfully launched +70 YouTube Channels that encompass a wide variety of formats and genres, 30 of which being original Uturn Productions.
 |
| Uturn Entertainment's Logo |
The sum of Uturn Entertainment’s programmes has averaged at 25 million views per month as of Dec 2014 (source:news.arabnet.me). With Uturn Entertainment’s base Channel alone reaching 25,737,710 views and 472,145 subscribers, while some of its individual channels have reached +40 million views (Takki Series), +306 million (Eysh Elly), +21 million (Noon Al-Niswa), +51 million (The Saudi Reporters) and +299 million (d7oomy_999) as of Dec 2015 and counting.
Uturn was founded in 2010 by then-university students Anmar Fathaldin, Omar Murad and Abdullah Mando, a group of restless tech-savvy youths with smartphones and cameras*.
Through its humble beginnings and initial programmes, Uturn easily went under the radar until later that year when it published the pilot episode of 3al6ayer (AKA On the Fly, pronounced; Al-Tayer), a satirical news programme in the vein of American late-night programmes such as The Daily Show with John Stewart/Trevor Noah. The show was hosted by Omar Hussein (relatively unknown at the time) and went viral**.
 |
| Omar Hussein, presenter/writer of Al-Tayer. Screenshot from Season 2, Episode 14 |
Al-Tayer's Logo
3al6ayer not only ignited public interest in Uturn and its future content, it consequently started forming an audience base for a certain type of content; one that was local, relevant and entertaining. In 2012, Al-Khatib, founder of local advertising company Full Stop, joined Uturn and took the company to new heights, all the while solidifying its brand image and media presence.
Afterwards, it wasn’t long until similar MCN companies e.g. Telfaz 11 started appearing. Telfaz 11, based in the Capital City of Riyadh and also established in 2010, received similar popularity among Saudi audiences after the release of one of its first and most famous shows to date, La Yekthar, hosted by Saudi comedian Fahad Al-Butairi, which gained +900, 000 subscribers and +92 million views as of Dec 2105. The company also produces and distributes Channels such as Alaa Wardi's Channel, an Arab musician and accapella performer, with over 60 million views and +400,000 subscribers.
Alaa Wardi (centre) performing a cover of Pharrell Williams' Happy with famous faces from Telfaz 11's productions, the video received over 3 million views.
Other notable Youtube Channels include Myrkott; a channel that publishes short comedic and satirical animations, produced by the studio of the same name and founded by cartoonist Malik Nejer, described by Saudi author and journalist Abdullah Maghlouth as the 'Saudi version of Matt Groening'. The Channel has received +230 million views and over a million subscribers to date.
A promo video published in 2015 for the channel.
Nevertheless, it was the start of the New Media Revolution; a revolution in audiovisual online content and social media that swept the nation and that was pioneered by Uturn Entertainment.
Everyone was talking about it.
Trust me, I was there.
By the way, welcome to my blog!
I'm a Saudi Film & Television Student writing a blog about the significance and impact of Youtube on the production of Saudi Arabian audiovisual content.
Through my blog, I'll be looking at the motives behind producing content online in Saudi Arabia and how it compares to mainstream film & television, the cultural and economic value of such content, what it means for the future of contemporary MENA media markets and how that relates to international film & television industries in the digital age.
That's it for now,
Be sure to check out this compilation of Uturn's Highlights from 2014 before going on to the next posts!
-----------
* You might want to keep this phrase in mind for future posts...stay tuned!
** Though 3al6ayer was one of the most popular programmes at the start of the New Media Revolution, it was in fact not the first serialised Saudi YouTube Programme.
That title belongs to the programme, Al-Tas'a Ila Rubu'u (AKA 8:45 or 15 to 9), which published its pilot episode in March 2010 and ran until November 2013. The programme was hosted by television presenter Muhammad Bazaid as a side project that later grew into an online phenomenon, such that the channel received 168, 281 subscribers and 17,845,219 views as of February 2016.
The format of the programme was also in the vein of satirical news programmes that arguably served as inspiration for its successor 3al6ayer.
 |
| Mohammad Bazaid, presenter/writer of 15 to 9 (source: 15 to 9 YouTube Channel). |
No comments:
Post a Comment