When was the last time you actually ran home to watch something on TV?
This generation will barely know what that was like in the past, says Nader Sobhan who heads the MENA office of iflix, the streaming media service that just launched in Saudi Arabia this week.
“The TV industry is being disrupted,” Sobhan said in an interview with Saudi Gazette. “What’s more is an emerging middle class around the globe are increasingly using mobile devices that serves as their entry to a world of entertainment.”
iflix, a Malaysian company catering to the Southeast Asian market since 2014, aims to expand its subscription video-on-demand service in the Middle East.
Asked how it’s going to compete with other streaming media platforms already existing in the market, iflix creators believe localized content gives them an edge to gain customers’ loyalty.
After subscribing with a free one-month trial, one will get to see a library categorized according to geographical regions. Movies and series include Khaleeji, Egyptian, Levant, Bedouin, Indian, in addition to the popular Western and Hollywood blockbusters.
Bollywood and Turkish content have also been added to the list, according to Middle Eastern customers’ taste.
“Context and having relevance with people is important,” says Sobhan. “We believe we have an in-depth knowledge when it comes to localizing content by making sure it conforms to cultural norms, having subtitles, and censoring but not having it overly cut up.”
“We also realize that the entire region is not the same and looked at the cultural clusters in depth,” he adds, explaining that the content is different according to each region, namely the Gulf, Levant, North Africa and Egypt.
The real competition we’re trying to fight is piracy, he adds. “People are not born to pirate. We’re providing a service that’s simpler, easier, cleaner, deeper and gives them the ability to enjoy content whenever they want.”
iflix already signed a deal with regional production companies to launch an Egyptian sitcom called The Godfather this Ramadan, starring more than 40 of the top Arab stars, including Ahmed Helmy, Ahmad Sakka, Mona Zaki, Mai Kassab, Ahmad Fahmi, and Shiko.
“We’re very excited in changing the way content is being created and giving more scope to tell more stories,” Sobhan told Saudi Gazette. “Original content is something I’m very keen on."
iflix’s subscription costs $4 a month and is ad-free. With a goal of reaching 1 billion people, its user-friendly platform is similar to other models, with access for multiple devices to original productions, thousands of first-run exclusive shows, award-winning TV series, blockbuster movies, popular local and regional Arabic and Asian content, and children’s programs. It also offers users to download to watch for later offline.
The service now reached Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Lebanon, Egypt and Sudan.