JEDDAH: Malls in Saudi Arabia are getting ready to take advantage of the government’s decision allowing them to open cinemas. Mall operators across the Kingdom say they are locating space for theaters and exploiting empty units.
Major work is expected in the next seven months in the preparation of malls. Mohammed Rashid Aba Al-Khiel, head of the digital sector and marketing at the Arab Centers, the largest developer, owner and operator of commercial centers in Saudi Arabia, told Arab News that the decision had been expected since the end of 2016.
“The decision comes as part of the package of economic entertainment projects to ensure that the money, or part of it, remains at home in the local content,” he said. Aba Al-Khiel added that the plans extended to cafes, entertainment and sales.
“Cinema adds to the experience of the beneficiary, especially with high temperatures and the dearth of (entertainment) options for Saudi families, which are limited to malls...”
He added: “If the operators can run movie theaters effectively, it is possible to keep pace with similar experiences in neighboring countries. We lack the operational experience in dealing with the film industry and its economic benefit. We suffer from a lack of experience in this field. Global experience should be considered.”
Malls have multiple options to take advantage of the decision, depending on the sizes and allocations of screens, diversity of the target segments and the value of the content, he explained.
The chairman of the commercial centers’ committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), Mohammed Alawi, told Arab News that a large group of malls had considered this decision and some included its engineering plans. Some malls have included it as their first choice to expand their investment and development plans.
Alawi said: “Some of these malls are targeting areas that were vacant and will begin to move directly to reformulate these sites and arrange them economically so that they can be configured.
“After the approval, global operators from all over the world will come to create an integrated cinema style according to the latest standards. This will encourage investors to move and find financial flows in the markets.”
Alawi expects that all malls in Saudi Arabia will work to keep up with the decision in the next seven months. “Malls that do not have cinema-equipped buildings will move and provide space even if they exploit some economically inefficient locations.”
Alawi, who previously ran the Red Sea Mall, said: “The Red Sea Mall, for example, would provide at least 12 cinema screens, with at least 300 seats each, currently being built.”
He explained that the flow of capital abroad throughout the year was not justified, and greatly hurt the Saudi economy. Alwai said that 6.5 million cinema tickets are booked annually online in Bahrain, of which 5 million are from Saudi Arabia.
“SR80 billion ($21.3 billion) is spent annually outside the country. The Vision (2030) aims to keep 50 percent of them domestically. The cinema decision can revive transport, subsistence, contracting companies and jobs for Saudis.”
Ryan Kadouri, director of the Red Sea Mall, told Arab News that the decision is great and will have a positive impact on the retail sector, will create a huge economic momentum in doubling the number of visitors to malls and will revive markets after the recession experienced in the past two years.
“It will provide support to the local market and create great job opportunities for Saudis. It will help increase the number of visitors to the malls.”
He said the volume of visitors accustomed to traveling abroad is expected to reach 21 million to the Red Sea Mall in 2018 from 18 million visitors in 2017.
Kadouri said: “Cinema projects are expected to take time because they are linked to specialized international companies, and all are waiting for the official mechanisms. We are in the process of preparation. The market will recover significantly.”
He pointed out that commercial malls are looking for open spaces and to keep pace with the variables of the market.
“The right operator should be chosen as well as the importance of quality, transfer of expertise and the use of modern technologies … and the allocation of showrooms for different segments of society, and so on.”
Saudi malls gearing up for a new future with big screens and entertainment
Saudi malls gearing up for a new future with big screens and entertainment
Saudi pavilion at UNESCO Arab Week in Paris celebrates Kingdom’s camel culture
- It shows how the role of the camel evolved from essential means of transport and provider of resources to a cultural icon embodying the Kingdom’s values
PARIS: The Saudi pavilion at UNESCO’s Arab Week event in Paris this week featured a showcase of the Kingdom’s deep-rooted connection to camel culture.
It explored the role of the animals as a vital part of the nation’s heritage, identity and civilization, and offered a glimpse into their enduring place in society, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday.
The exhibits showed how the role of the camel has evolved from essential means of transport and provider of resources to a cultural icon that embodies the Kingdom’s values, and the ways in which camels are embedded in Saudi customs, traditions and literature, including poetry and proverbs.
The Saudi Ministry of Culture designated 2024 “The Year of the Camel” to highlight and reinforce the status of the animal as a national symbol and cornerstone of the Arabian cultural identity. Camels are regularly celebrated across the country through dedicated festivals, race events, clubs and research centers.
UNESCO’s Arab Week, which features 22 Arab nations, was initiated by Saudi Arabia. Guests at the official opening of the event on Monday included Saudi envoys, ambassadors representing other nations, Arab and other international diplomats stationed in France, and officials from UNESCO.
AI makes media industry more efficient and drives growth, expert says
- Martin Sorrell: ‘AI speeds up writing processes, increasing efficiency’
- New tech allows for increasingly personalized content
RIYADH: Artificial intelligence is being used more effectively and efficiently to drive higher economic development in the media industry, said Martin Sorrell, founder and executive chairman of S4 Capital.
At a panel session at the Athar Festival of Creativity Sorrell described how media agencies, such as S4 Capital and its subsidiary, Media.Monks, are using AI in a number of ways.
One application of AI in media, he said, is in “speeding the execution of copywriting and visualization.”
Time to market is drastically decreasing: “What took us literally days is now taking us three hours,” he said. Yet this produces another problem because reducing the time of procurement cuts costs, but this also means it is necessary to move to a model that increases gains in outputs,” he said.
Another application is in personalizing content for consumers. Sorrell told Arab News: “Individualization, hyper personalization, are going to become more important. Knowing the consumer in excruciating detail, using data, using the signals from the platforms, using first-party data, it becomes even more important.”
Using Netflix audience feedback algorithms as an example, Sorrell pointed out that AI enables these algorithms to produce larger and more accurate quantities of output, for example, recommendations based on user profile readings.
“We charge on a per asset used basis. Price of the asset may come down, but total revenue grows because we’re using multiple assets,” he said.
A growing area is in “media planning and buying.” Sophisticated algorithms can far more efficiently choose the distribution of planning and buying than individual media planners.
Technological capital and human capital, however, go hand in hand.
“We as agencies have to validate the algorithm’s analysis. We have to make sure that the client’s money is spent in the right way.”
Another benefit of AI is its ability to improve organizational efficiency. Where organizational silos once kept departments and specializations separate, AI opens up information to the majority of users.
To maintain the emotional connection and trust of the brand-consumer relationship in a technologically driven world, according to Sorrell, understanding individual motivation is increasingly crucial.
“Insights into culture, insights into language, into custom, into belief, into family, into country, that knowledge becomes critically important, far more so in a globalized world,” he said.
The diversity and knowledge of global and local organizations are essential for the success of any company, but the value of personalization means that local knowledge may take the lead, he added.
Quoting Harvard Business School professor Ted Levitt, Sorrell continued: “because remember, consumers will consume everything in the same way everywhere.”
Advising young professionals in tech, media and other industries operating in an AI-powered future, Sorrell said that rather than stripping away opportunities from creatives, avoiding the risk of “bombarding” consumers with much of the same, AI means “creativity becomes even more important.”
Additionally, creatives need to familiarize themselves with the skills and roles that are complementary to the new world: “I think every creative should learn Chinese. I think every creative should learn Spanish, probably Arabic too … and they should learn code.”
“The skills of the ‘Mad Men’, that Don Draper had or his colleagues … are very different to what you need now.”
Green initiative launched in Eastern Region
- Goal is to plant more than 500,000 trees and 3 million flowers throughout Dammam’s streets and parks
- Scheme, in line with Vision 2030’s goal of increasing green spaces, also aligns with the broader national afforestation campaign
DAMMAM: The Eastern Region Municipality has announced a special initiative involving 30 volunteers to mark National Greening Season, launched by Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Abdulrahman Al-Fadley.
The goal is to plant more than 500,000 trees and 3 million flowers throughout Dammam’s streets and parks in a bid to improve air quality, reduce heat and enhance biodiversity, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The scheme, in line with Vision 2030’s goal of increasing green spaces, also aligns with the broader national afforestation campaign under the Saudi Green Initiative, which aims to promote sustainable environmental development and enhance vegetation cover.
The municipality emphasized the initiative would help combat desertification and promote the achievement of environmental balance through the use of locally suitable plants.
It highlighted how collaboration with various institutions will raise awareness about afforestation and support green infrastructure, thereby improving the quality of life in the Eastern Region.
Madinah research center releases map of 50 prominent archaeological sites
- Map includes documented historical landmarks, their current locations, and their association with the life of the Prophet Muhammad
- Forms part of the center’s scientific and cultural documentation efforts, with the map featuring an interactive barcode for each historical landmark
RIYADH: The Madinah Research and Studies Center has released an updated version of the Innaha Taybah map, which features 50 historical and archaeological sites in the region.
The map includes documented historical landmarks, their current locations, and their association with the life of the Prophet Muhammad.
This comes as part of the center’s scientific and cultural documentation efforts, with the map featuring an interactive barcode for each historical landmark that introduces the place and allows users to view the historical site’s details.
It contains significant landmarks that tourists can visit, starting with the Prophet’s Mosque, the most prominent site in Madinah and a destination for Muslim visitors throughout the year.
Also featured are Baqi’ Al-Gharqad, Al-Safiyyah Museum and Park, the Architecture of the Prophet’s Mosque Exhibition and the International Fair and Museum of the Prophet’s Biography.
The map also includes prominent historical mosques that were built during the Prophet’s era and are still standing, such as the Mosque of Al-Ghamama, Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq Mosque, Omar bin Al-Khattab Mosque, Ali ibn Abi Talib Mosque, Al-Sajdah Mosque, Al-Ijabah Mosque, Al-Suqya Mosque, Al-Manaratain Mosque, Bani Haram Mosque, Al-Fatah Mosque, Al-Rayah Mosque, Bani Harithah Mosque, Al-Shaikhain Mosque, Al-Jumu’ah Mosque, and Quba Mosque.
The Innaha Taybah map includes numerous archaeological landmarks, notably the Sela Mountain, Jabal Aynayn (Al-Rumat), the Martyrs of Uhud Cemetery, and ancient wells that have been rehabilitated as part of a project to restore historical sites in the region. These include Bir Al-Khatam (Well of Arees), Athq Well, Al-Ihn Well, the Well of Ghars and Al-Foqair Well. Other sites include the Urwa Palace, Al-Jamawat, the King Fahd Complex for the Printing of the Holy Qur’an, and natural landmarks connected to events that took place in Madinah during the time of the Prophet Muhammad and subsequent eras.
Saudi cabinet calls for Arab-Islamic summit, urgent political solutions amid regional crises
RIYADH: The Saudi cabinet discussed the Kingdom’s call for an Arab-Islamic summit to address ongoing Israeli aggression in Palestinian territories and Lebanon, in a session chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday.
The cabinet also stressed the urgent need for a political resolution to the crisis in Sudan, urging all parties to honor the commitments outlined in the "Jeddah Declaration" of May 2023. It emphasized the importance of an immediate ceasefire in Sudan, a cessation of hostilities, and the unobstructed delivery of humanitarian aid to those in need.
The cabinet also reviewed the Kingdom’s recent hosting of the inaugural meeting of the Global Alliance to Implement the Two-State Solution, which brought together representatives from 90 countries and international organizations.
