BBC Studios has signed a MoU with beIN Media Group establishing a strategic partnership to explore opportunities for the co-development, co-production and distribution of content in Qatar, the Middle East and Turkey.
The agreement, which will run for an initial three years from August 1, was inked by Paul Dempsey, president for global markets at BBC Studios, and Yousef Al-Obaidly, deputy CEO of beIN Media Group, at BBC Studios’ London headquarters in Television Centre.
As part of the agreement, BBC Studios and beIN intend to seek opportunities for the development and/or production of content, while exploring the acquisition of additional BBC Studios’ digital content by beIN to complement the current BBC programming on beIN’s platforms.
Included in the MOU is the agreement by BBC Studios and beIN to explore investment in content production and for the two companies to collaborate on knowledge exchange and media business development opportunities in the State of Qatar.
Commenting on the MoU, Dempsey said: This MOU builds on BBC Studios’ successful existing partnership with beIN Media Group and stands to bring our expertise in development and production to an even wider international audience. It further demonstrates our commitment to working with partners globally to create world-class programmes.”
Al-Obaidly added, “We are incredibly excited about furthering our trusted partnership with BBC Studios. This memorandum of understanding establishes a new milestone of cultural collaboration between our organisations, bringing together two of the strongest global entertainment brands to deliver stand-out original content, cutting-edge innovation and – ultimately – more value to our customers. We are also delighted to support BBC Studios’ intention to explore broader business opportunities together with beIN Media Group in Qatar.”
Earlier this year, beIN launched BBC Earth, BBC Studios’ global factual brand, as a linear channel across the Middle East and North Africa via its DTH service. BBC Earth joined BBC Studios’ pre-school brand, CBeebies, which has been on the beIN platform since 2016. BBC Earth and CBeebies are also available as bespoke channels in Turkey via the pay-TV operator Digiturk, which – along with Miramax studios – is also part of beIN Media Group’s global and entertainment and sports business.
