| Kippreport.com

Medialeader Acquires Rights to Represent Saudi’s Al Watan Newspaper

January 17, 2011 10:19 by Rasha Reslan

Leading regional media representative Medialeader, announced it recently obtained the rights to be the sole media representative of Al Watan newspaper across all major international markets excluding Saudi Arabia.

The agreement, that also includes representation of the newspaper’s website www.alwatan.com.sa, was signed by Alexandre Hawari, co-CEO, Medialeader and Hatim Hamed Mouminah, CEO, Aseer Establishment for Publishing and Printing, publishers of Al Watan newspaper.

According to a recent Pan Arab Research Centre (PARC) report, the UAE was the top ad spending GCC market in the first half of 2010, with a reported 31% market share. The Al Watan arrangement will see Medialeader capitalize on this leadership position and further the Saudi paper’s profile in the UAE as one of the premium platforms for advertisers to reach into Saudi Arabia, the largest market in the GCC and one of the region’s leading economies in terms of growth. It also has the distinction of being the region’s biggest market in terms of advertising share and spend.

As one of the leading newspapers in Saudi Arabia with a circulation of 210,000, Al Watan newspaper provides advertisers an ideal opportunity in which to engage Saudi consumers and businesses. “We have chosen Medialeader to help us tap a growing list of advertisers who want to exploit the huge potential afforded by the Saudi market,” says Mouminah.

In less than a decade, Al Watan has grown from a small regional newspaper in Saudi Arabia to become one of the kingdom’s most read Arabic dailies, and the most quoted by international media, underscoring its growing prominence and prestige.

“Medialeader brings to this partnership its in-house expertise and extensive knowledge of the media industry across the MENA region with offices in Algiers, Beirut, Dubai, Jeddah, Paris, Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Tunis. We are delighted to be working with Al Watan, and are keen to leverage our 23 years experience to help strengthen its positioning as one of the leading newspapers in Saudi Arabia,” says Hawari, whose company represents a roster of leading media, including magazines, daily newspapers, TV networks and out-of-home media.

Hawari explains that Medialeader will be focusing its marketing efforts for Al Watan in the GCC and Levant, as well as key markets around the globe. “We will provide advertisers from all over the world the opportunity to target consumers and businesses in Saudi Arabia, a country cited for its continuing economic growth and future prospects,” he continues.

Al Watan’s addition to Medialeader’s portfolio of media titles reflects the company’s continuing thrust to increase its network in the region, and offers media agencies and advertisers a wide variety of advertising opportunities. Medialeader is a member of Mediaquest Corp, established in 1997 and one of the leading publishing houses in the Middle East and North Africa with over 17 consumer and trade titles covering business, marketing, communications, lifestyle, entertainment and women’s interest.

With over 150 employees worldwide, Mediaquest Corp. already publishes well-regarded titles including Trends, Arabies, GMR, Saneou Al Hadath, Communicate and the recently launched Dotmena.  Dotmena is positioned to become a leading network in the MENA region boasting 200 million impressions that promote business, marketing, communications, sports, women’s interest, lifestyle and entertainment websites and portals.  More recently, Mediaquest Corp. acquired several long-standing print and on-line media titles from The Media Factory including Autocar Middle East Magazine, F1 Racing Middle East Magazine, Policy, The Brief, and FourFourTwo.

Tags: media representative of Al Watan newspaper, Medialeader, Medialeader Acquires Rights, Saudi’s Al Watan Newspaper