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RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan discussed developments in Lebanon with his French and Lebanese counterparts in phone calls on Monday.
In a phone call with Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib, Prince Faisal stressed the Kingdom’s support for Lebanon’s security and stability.
During a separate phone call, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot and Prince Faisal discussed the consequences of developments in Lebanon and efforts made in this regard.
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.”
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.
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.
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.
RIYADH: Understanding your fan base is a key element of successfully marketing your sports brand, Manchester United’s director of marketing told the audience at the Athar Festival of Creativity in Riyadh.
During his keynote speech, “Cultural Connection, Unbreakable Bonds and the Power of Stories: Lessons Learnt From a Career in Sports Marketing,” Matt McKie talked about his experience working in notable roles for the Olympics, Nike and EA Sports.
Whether you are a football fan or not, there is no denying that Manchester United is one of the most well-known clubs in the world. But how did it gain its reputation?
Like many popular teams, it is about connecting with your audience and Manchester United has a unique way of “converting followers to fans,” McKie told Arab News.
“I would say the absolute key to finding an audience and growing is really understanding your fans and, in the UK and in Europe, football clubs are bigger than just sports assets, than community assets, they mean more,” he said. “There will be generations of families that have gone to watch the team and support them, so honoring that and respecting that is absolutely key.”
An important marketing tactic for McKie involves researching the upbringing and backgrounds of athletes before their rise to stardom. This is a way to humanize them and create campaigns with a personal touch.
“I think humanizing athletes is an important marketing tactic (and) I think it’s an important human tactic,” he said. “These are individuals in the public eye, there are millions and millions of people watching them, expecting things from them. They have the same problems we have ... so it’s incredibly important that we understand that.”
McKie highlights unique brand identities for emerging football clubs, such as FC Como and Venezia, in Italy, and Forest Green Rovers in England. Venezia is known for its love of fashion while the latter has claimed the title of becoming the first fully vegan football club.
“It’s really about building a profile and understanding who the audience is and then you can serve them the things that will drive them down towards being a fan, and a committed fan, that comes to games etc.
“It’s very important in women’s sports because of the very high proportion of fandom that exists there. It’s important as marketers that we actually bring them closer, we understand them, we give them content that’s going to engage them and not just bring the ideas of men’s football across and expect it to work.”
For Saudi teams, McKie’s advice is to “have a point of view.”
“Within Saudi, a lot of these teams are new or relatively new in the grand scheme of football. So there’s an opportunity to have a point of view and stand for something … to form a team that plays a certain way and isn’t bound by baggage that can come from being a really big heritage brand.”
