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Fox channel unveils Qatar expansion plan

By Satish Kanady DOHA: Fox International Channel (FIC), which distributes TV channels and digital services worldwide, is set to gear up its operations in Qatar.

Driven by its growing viewership base in Qatar and the country's enhanced technology innovations, the FIC's Mena operations is looking to expand its presence here, the channel's newly- appointed Mena region senior vice-president Rohit D'Silva (pictured) told The Peninsula in a one-to-one.

The TV broadcaster, which is part of Rupert Murdoch's media empire, is primarily looking for tapping Qatar's recently-launched next generation Qtel fibre broadband network to reach out to bigger audience. The channel head also announced FIC's strategic plans to boost its existing partnership with Qatar Airways . Exploring the possibilities for a two-way partnership with Qatar-based media group is another expansion strategy.

Qtel is currently providing six Fox Channels to its customers. FIC sees this technological milestone as a great opportunity. With such high bandwidth capacity, customers can fully enjoy live streaming on Internet, download High Definition movies and share hundreds of photos in a matter of minutes.

"Currently, Qatar is airing FIC's nine channels. Qtel carry six of them. But many of them are not high definition. Our priority is to convert them into HD. Qatar's ultra-fast internet facility would help transform this," he said

Qatar Airways is one of our key international advertisement partners. The broadcaster is looking to build this relationship further. "We work with some other global airlines as well and able to provide market -specific content to Qatar Airways to its various destinations. We've lot of Brussels- focused channels. We are able to provide better solutions to Qatar Airways ."

FIC is also exploring partnership possibilities with some of the leading media groups in Qatar. "For instance, the channel, like Al Jazeera, is a major global player. FIC is also a key player in the international broadcast industry. There could be various opportunities where we could have a two-way partnership. We are happy to expand partnership with these organizations which have large regional, global presence."

D'Silva said FIC's Arabic-dubbed popular western shows are a big hit in the region. The broadcaster's viewership in Qatar has grown 20 percent in 2011. There is a phenomenal growth in the viewership of the dubbed versions of shows like Masterchef Australia. Masterchef Australia is an Australian competitive cooking game show.

"Our research revealed that there is a huge demand for quality entertainment targeting women. On the Fox, over 50 percent of viewership comes from women," he said. The FIC, debuted with a single channel in 2008 in the Mena region, has now 13 channels. FIC has been ranked as one of the top 15 channels in the UAE.

© The Peninsula 2012