LONDON: International Media Investments on Monday announced a new partnership with CNN to launch a dedicated digital business platform from the Middle East and North Africa region for Arabic speakers around the world.
Due to be launched later this year, CNN Business Arabic will provide business, finance, and economic content, while also offering audiences the latest information and analysis.
Chief executive officer of IMI, Nart Bouran, said: “There are estimated to be over 430 million Arabs in the world yet there are very few quality, dedicated Arabic business news platforms in the MENA region.
“The recent Arab Youth Survey stated that 79 percent of Arab nationals between the ages of 18 and 24 get their news from social media. Given the importance of business news to interpret and analyze economic facts and how they impact the world economy, it is fundamental that we create a fact-based, dedicated, quality business news source for the MENA region and the Arabic-speaking population.
“CNN Business Arabic will be a powerful partnership combining the digital first knowledge within the IMI group with the brand recognition and newsgathering capabilities of CNN,” he added.
Established in Abu Dhabi Media Zone Authority, IMI is a privately owned investment company which aims to build a portfolio of quality media assets around the world.
On the linkup, Phil Nelson, chief operating officer at CNN International Commercial, noted the long history of CNN’s international partnerships.
He said: “The creation of CNN Business Arabic will be an important development that complements our existing CNN Arabic offering and increases our digital footprint among people who speak one of the world’s most widespread languages. We look forward to working with IMI to make this a reality.”
