LONDON: The Asian Cup Media Committee has denounced the behavior of a beIN Sports presenter during Wednesday’s Group D clash between Iraq and Iran for bringing politics into sports while also commenting on Thursday’s Saudi Arabia-Qatar encounter.
Mentioning politics while broadcasting is against FIFA’s laws and regulations as well as the governing principles of the International Olympic Committee that prohibit misuse of sports for political purposes, the committee said.
The Committee disputed the presenter’s claims on the alleged absence of Qatari fans during the championship, citing the Qatari media delegation’s statements to AFP that the Qatari official delegation did not encounter any problems or obstacles during the championship.
In addition to that the committee also cited the Asian Football Confederation’s statements that showed up the Qatari channel presenter’s allegations of on the absence of Qatari fans as false.
The Committee affirmed that all efforts were being made during the championship to ensure the smooth attendance of fans supporting their national teams at the tournament taking place across the UAE.
The Committee called on the AFC to take appropriate action to separate politics from sports, affirming that it reserved the right to take all necessary legal action in collaboration with authorities concerned against the channel and its presenter.
Asian Cup Media Committee hits out at BeIN Sports presenter over political comments
Asian Cup Media Committee hits out at BeIN Sports presenter over political comments
- BeIN Sports presenter denounced for talking about politics during the Iran-Iraq clash.
- Asian Cup Media Committee call on AFC to take appropriate action to separate politics from sports.
Meta to charge Arab advertisers extra fee for reaching European audiences
- US tech giant told advertisers it will add fees ranging from 2 to 5 percent on image and video ads delivered on its platforms to offset digital service taxes
- Charges are determined by where the audience is located, not where the advertiser is based
LONDON: Meta will from July 1 impose location-based surcharges on advertisers targeting audiences in six European countries, a move that will directly affect Arab businesses that run campaigns across the continent.
The US tech giant announced it will add fees ranging from 2 to 5 percent on image and video ads delivered on its platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, to offset digital service taxes imposed by individual governments.
Crucially, the charges are determined by where the audience is located, not where the advertiser is based.
That means Saudi, Emirati, Egyptian or other Arab companies paying to reach consumers in the UK, France or Italy will face the additional costs regardless of their own country’s tax arrangements with Meta.
Fees will apply at 2 percent for ads reaching UK audiences, 3 percent for France, Italy and Spain, and 5 percent for Austria and Turkiye.
“If you deliver $100 in ads to Italy, where there is a 3% location fee, you will be charged $100 (ad delivery), plus $3 (location fee), for $103 total,” the company wrote in an email to an advertiser initially reported by Bloomberg. “Note that any applicable VAT will be calculated on top of the total amount.”
The taxes have been introduced at different points, starting with France in 2019, though not the EU as a bloc.
Many tech companies report substantial sales in Europe and millions of users but pay minimal tax on profits. The goal is to claw back locally derived economic value, Bloomberg reported.
The move follows similar decisions by Google and Amazon, which have also begun passing European digital tax costs on to advertisers.
For Arab brands with growing European footprints, particularly in fashion, travel, hospitality and media, the new fees add another layer of cost to campaigns already subject to currency and targeting complexities.
Digital services taxes, levied as a percentage of revenues earned by major tech platforms in individual countries, have drawn criticism from Washington, which argues they unfairly target US companies.
Meta has been reached for comments.
