MBC Group sees Shahid as 'growth mechanism’, expects continued growth in 2024: CEO

Sam Barnett, CEO of MBC Group Co. 

Sam Barnett, CEO of MBC Group Co. said that the Shahid platform has grown significantly in 2023 and represents the group’s growth mechanism.

 
He added that the platform will continue to grow, contributing to boosting the group’s annual profits.
 
In an interview with Al Arabiya TV, the CEO acknowledged that the platform is operating at a loss, but the losses have significantly shrunk over the past year.
 
The significant growth trajectory puts Shahid on track to break even within the next five years.
 
This change has a major impact on the group’s profit margins, primarily in 2023, as there was a great focus on ensuring good margins on all content, whether purchased or produced. This relates to cost control of the content and providing the best possible return across all owned platforms, Barnett said.
 
He stated that several factors impacted advertisements last year, but advertisements on the Shahid platform grew by 2.5% due to strategic shifts from previous years, such as leveraging content to boost subscriber numbers and active users on the free side of the platform by 25%.

Barnett added that MBC Media Solution (MMS) focused on developing its expertise in the digital advertising strategy last year as it expanded its team of agents across multiple locations.
The CEO pointed out that the group’s current strategy is to boost production capacity, especially in Saudi Arabia, indicating that the first phase of its facility in Al-Narjis in Riyadh was completed during the fourth quarter of 2023. 
 
He highlighted that the group is also developing a production complex in the Al-Narjis area. The complex will have three huge film studios, five TV studios, and facilities for production and office services. The initiatives will help the group, as it plans to produce substantial content in the Kingdom starting this year, he added.
 
Barnett expects continued growth for the group in 2024 through the Shahid platform, which is a key asset. He forecasts the number of subscribers increasing by 40% year-on-year, fueled by the content targeting different categories.
 
The CEO pointed to the resilience of the advertising segment, forecast growth in TV advertising and various measures to support its diversified activity.

MBC Group reported net profits before minority interest of SAR 69 million in 2023, compared to SAR 48 million a year before, according to Argaam's data.

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