Streaming platforms key facilitators for young Saudi talent: media group CEO

Jomana Al-Rashed, chief executive officer of Saudi Research and Media Group. (Screenshot)

• “Content is king, and distribution supports the traveling of that content,” says Jomana Al-Rashed

RIYADH: Streaming platforms rely on user-generated content, and Saudi talents are taking full advantage of them.
According to Jomana Al-Rashed, chief executive officer of Saudi Research and Media Group, a greater content can reach a wider audience.
She said: “Content is king, and distribution supports the traveling of that content.”
In Saudi Arabia, several cases have shined through streaming platforms such as YouTube, Snapchat, and Instagram.
Among those is Arabic podcast and documentaries platform Thmanyah. Its productions include “Fnjan,” a talk show with more than 1.6 million average monthly listeners, “Swalif Business,” “Socrates,” and “Things That Changed Us.”
In July 2021, SRMG announced the acquisition of a 51 percent controlling stake in Thmanyah.
Speaking at the Future Investment Initiative forum in Riyadh, Al-Rashed said: “Thmanyah was created eight years ago as a startup by a young Saudi talent leveraging audio content and was acquired by the group at a very high valuation.”
She noted that artificial intelligence and data was the way forward.
“We now know that any source of content in the future has to be empowered by data and has to be empowered by leveraging AI.
“It is the natural progression of media consumption and media creation,” she added.