DUBAI: MBC Group has partnered with Vuz, an immersive social app that allows users to stream in the metaverse and extended reality, an umbrella term encompassing new technologies such as augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality.
Through the partnership, Vuz aims to “bring in the best content to integrate within our immersive social app,” while embracing the latest media trends, said Khaled Zaatarah, founder of Vuz.
He added: “Our goal is to provide our users with the most beloved content and the best immersive experiences.”
The partnership will see the Vuz app featured across MBC Group’s media assets in the region including satellite TV, radio, social media and streaming platform Shahid. Key content from the app will also be featured in certain markets.
Additionally, Vuz will launch special social channels for MBC on its platform.
“There’s no doubt that immersive experiences have become increasingly important in the world of entertainment, and the region is fully embracing this,” said Fadel Zahreddine, group director of emerging media at MBC Group.
He added: “Creating a more realistic and engaging environment allows users to become more deeply involved in — and more connected to — the content they are consuming.”
Named Tech Company of the Year at the 2022 edition of the Tech Entrepreneur Awards, Vuz has raised over $30 million in funding and is backed by investors such as e& Capital and Dubai Future District Fund, among others.
MBC Group partners with social app Vuz
https://arab.news/rtwg5
MBC Group partners with social app Vuz
- The partnership will see the Vuz app featured across MBC Group’s media assets in the region
- Additionally, Vuz will launch special social channels for MBC on its platform
128 journalists killed worldwide in 2025: press group
- The press group voiced particular alarm over the situation in the Palestinian territories, where it recorded 56 media professionals killed in 2025
BRUSSELS, Belgium: A total of 128 journalists were killed around the world in 2025, more than half of them in the Middle East, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) said Thursday.
The grim toll, up from 2024, “is not just a statistic, it’s a global red alert for our colleagues,” IFJ general secretary Anthony Bellanger told AFP.
The press group voiced particular alarm over the situation in the Palestinian territories, where it recorded 56 media professionals killed in 2025 as Israel’s war with Hamas ground on in Gaza.
“We’ve never seen anything like this: so many deaths in such a short time, in such a small area,” Bellanger said.
Journalists were also killed in Yemen, Ukraine, Sudan, Peru, India and elsewhere.
Bellanger condemned what he called “impunity” for those behind the attacks. “Without justice, it allows the killers of journalists to thrive,” he warned.
Meanwhile, the IFJ said that across the globe 533 journalists were currently in prison — a figure that has more than doubled over the past half-decade.
China once again topped the list as the worst jailer of reporters with 143 behind bars, including in Hong Kong, where authorities have been criticized by Western nations for imposing national security laws quashing dissent.
The IFJ’s count for the number of journalists killed is typically far higher than that of Reporters Without Borders, due to different counting methods. This year’s IFJ toll also included nine accidental deaths.
Reporters Without Borders said 67 journalists were killed in the course of their work this year, while UNESCO puts the figure at 93.
