1. Question 1
Experts felt that one of the biggest challenges faced by MTV while launching MTV Arabia was the prevalent culture in the Arab world. Discuss the Arab culture. How is it expected to pose a challenge to MTV?
First of all, it is impossible to talk about groups of people without generalizing. At this point it must be emphasized that there is not just “one” Arab culture or society. The Arab world is full of rich and diverse communities, groups and cultures. Each of the Arab countries has different perspectives. That’s why differences exist not only among coun- tries, but within countries as well. With 22 countries formed, the Arab region has in some parts the same religious, politics and ethical views and some are totally different Some people would say that it is known for reacting, and some think over reacting nega- tively to controversial content. For example, within the Arab’s there are three types of religions, Judaism, Islam and Christianity; so these make some things acceptable in some countries and in others not. Furthermore the Middle East offered a huge population of youth with a rich and diverse culture. And exactly these young people can be seen as the target group of MTV. But you also have to be aware in which parts of the Arabian world you are, because religion, for example, is one of the most important aspects on Arabs’ lifestyle, and has something to do in almost every decision Arabs’ take. Not only political leaders are very influenced by religion on their decisions and those are examples that society view as a model. One of the most crucial facts at MTV decision on entering the Middle East market, was the fact the 65% of the Arab population is younger than 25 years old. MTV as a big Music television channel has to think about these problems, which probably can exist:
* Different language (instead of English)
* No sexual content (remake some video clips which are too sexy)
* Decent clothing