Within the framework of the Saudi Media Forum, a discussion session was held under the title “Will on-demand viewing eliminate the traditional one?”
The session focused on the challenges faced by the television industry amid an increase in alternatives through digital methods, as well as the future of the economies of the TV industry amid a growing technology that raise question marks over the fate of the traditional viewership.
The session, moderated by Najwa Asran from CNBC Arabia, was attended by LBCI chairman Sheikh Pierre El Daher, Executive Editor of Middle East News at Bloomberg, former President of Saudi Arabia's General Commission of Audiovisual Media Rida Al-Haidar and former chairman of the Radio and Television Authority Abdul Rahman Al-Hazza.
El Daher said during the session that “the viewing method will be affected and not the content, which will remain and grow,” adding that with the progress of technology and internet, the viewer will be able to choose what to watch and when.
He also pointed out that within 10 years, the majority of television devices will become “Smart TVs”.
The “Saudi Media Forum” is organized by the Saudi Press Association and will be held over two consecutive days (December 2 and 3) at the Hilton Riyadh Hotel alongside a selection of speakers and experts in the media industry.