In a move considered to be the first of its kind in the Saudi Chambers, the JCCI has launched the first specialized economic TV channel. The creation of “Al-Diwan” was announced by Bandar Sami Arab, general manage of the channel. Sami told Nadim Al-Hamid of Arab News that the idea of creating the channel came as one of the initiatives from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jeddah, and represents a style of interactive communication with subscribers, the members of the Chamber, and the business and trade community in Jeddah in particular. Sami added that this channel will host a number of media members and journalists who are specifically economists in nature.
Following is the full text of the interview:
What is the purpose of establishing the Al-Diwan channel?
This channel came as an initiative by the Board of Directors of the JCCI, and the idea of a satellite channel came as a mean of interactive communication with subscribers, the Chamber, and the business and trade community in Jeddah. The idea is to foster communication with the cultural, social and economic community in the Kingdom in general, and work has been ongoing with the TV Council to develop a channel strategy that would achieve the Council's vision and the interests of the Chamber via the establishment of this channel.
In light of the large number of economic channels on one hand, and the strong competition on the other hand, what is new and distinctive that will be provided by this channel to viewers?
Three main things will distinguish us from other channels in the same field:
All what will be broadcast on this channel directly relates to everyday issues of the citizen, from what school your son is at to your professional field and specialty, to the neighborhood where you live, and to hot topics that you talk about with your friends and family, as well as other issues of concern to citizens.
Pluralism and flexibility opinion will give all speakers absolute freedom in expressing their opinions related to their field. For example, if we take the problem of the rising price of chicken, we will give the specialized merchant in this area the chance to talk freely and justify his position without interruption during the program. We will give the opportunity to the consumer to voice their opinion without the presence of the merchant. Then we will give the opportunity to the Ministry of Trade and Consumer to also express their position, without the presence of the concerned parties. In that sense, we will not be biased to the opinion of one party and adopt it, but rather give the opportunity for all parties to explain their point of view. Typically media just puts the merchant and the official in the face of the consumer, and does not get a concrete outcome or solution that is useful to the citizen who raised the problem. This leads us to the third point, which is follow-up and implementation. As I mentioned earlier, the idea of creating this channel came as an initiative of the Chamber of Commerce, and when the Chamber has constructive influence in the adoption of solutions and initiatives, whether economic in particular, or social, cultural and leisurely in general, when committees and centers and sectors operating in the Chamber have experience in implementation, follow up, application solutions, the channel will be first one of the sources of information for these entities. Secondly, observers of businesses and initiatives during implementation stage can track the situation through the channel step-by-step. Thirdly, it will be an engine to other sectors to participate and cooperate in initiatives and bring about positive change that benefits businesses and society in general.
There are rumors that the channel will fail to withstand the intense competition occurring between existing economic channels…What is your response?
There is no doubt that the competition is intense. Here come two important factors for success: The first factor is strategy, and as I explained earlier, there is a strategic plan already developed at the hands of technical experts and administrators. The second factor is the factor of operating and managing the implementation of this strategic plan. Here we will rely on our sons at home together with local and external experts. We will select qualified personnel and provide them with training to upgrade their skills to meet the level of competition and achieve our goal of gaining the satisfaction and confidence of viewers and advertisers. On the other hand, the economic feasibility study, which we developed, showed us the expenses and income of the action plan explained, so accordingly we can clearly measure our operational goals and performance on a step-by-step basis.
The channel is now broadcasted experimentally on Nilesat ...When will official broadcast start?
First, we must recognize that the creation of any channel is not simple. Therefore, we will not begin until we are confident that our broadcast and image matches the taste of the audience. From there, we will turn this theoretical stage into a clear action plan for the viewer, and God willing, we will formally begin broadcasting during the first quarter of the year 2013, but with more variety.
The channel is one of the fruits of initiatives of the business owners in the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry ... Aren't you afraid of the potential for bias and favoritism that may be exposed to the channel in the future in favor of one businessman against another, based on his position and its importance in the Chamber?
I do not expect that to happen at all. The proof is that it is known that the Chamber has published Trade Magazine about its ventures for more than five decades. The magazine publishes all activities and special events of the Chamber, in addition to all the activities and events for businessmen and members of the Board of Directors. It was has been recorded during this long period of time since the magazine started that any kind of courtesy or favoritism in favor of any person belonging to another Chamber occurred at the expense of another.
Many observers and specialists in this field expect that the channel may be the cause of trouble and sensitivities among the members of the Board of Directors on one side and the businessmen from the other side ... What is your response?
I would like to consider all the views of the observers and specialists in this field in order to rectify and avoid this problem. I did not receive any of these expectations until now. Let me assure you that my office is open and anyone can give me his opinion for a sound goal for the benefit of the channel. This will be gladly accepted and I will be happy to do so.
Since this channel is a purely economic channel, it will be distinct from other channels in the arena. Did you sign contracts with international channels to broadcast reports, economic news and analysis exclusively for the channel to benefit from them through exchanging experiences and ideas?
The channel is already moving in this direction. In addition to CNN, BBC and World channels, there are talks underway with other several organizations such as the German group Deutsche Welle and Reuters. We will announce very soon more about these agreements, all of which will be exclusive to Al-Diwan Channel.
Will the channel cover other important economic events in the other Saudi cities such as Riyadh, Dammam, and others, or it will be limited to Jeddah only?
Our plan will be gradual. We will focus in its current first phase only on the city of Jeddah and very soon we will cover the Mekkah region in full. In the future, according to the availability of potential technical and human needed resources, we will be able to cover all the economic events in all other cities of the Kingdom.
