Our investment concentration will be in that area of programming. While digital technology is inevitable, we should not forget what is on the screen, rather than just its method of delivery. Going digital in that respect, therefore, has to make commercial sense as well as providing an improved service. Oil revenues have significantly fallen over the past year. MBC is not in the oil business but all Saudi companies, given the nature of the Saudi economy, are to a greater or lesser degree, somewhere down the line, fueled by the oil industry.
All broadcasters operate in the overall economic climate of their region.
MBC gains its revenue from pan-Arab as well as from a Saudi Arabian perspective. Every business, therefore, while concentrating on its cost base, is really driven by its income. All recent surveys have indicated that the advertising market in the Gulf region is vibrant. Our view is very much to invest in programming in order to drive revenue up, and I believe that this situation is achievable in the current economic climate. TBS Copyright 1998 Transnational Broadcasting Studies.