DUBAI (AlArabiya.net)
The Chairman of MBC Group, Sheikh Walid al-Ibrahim, warned that the "exaggerated" prices of Arabic TV serials are driving broadcasters to seek non-Arab alternatives.
In an interview with Laha magazine, al-Ibrahim said that Arab soaps -- especially those with superstars -- are grossly over-priced, the Saudi edition of Al-Hayat said on Tuesday.
"I am delivering a straightforward message to Arab producers and telling them that if they insist on these exaggerated prices, MBC will take the initiative and look for substitutes," he told the magazine.
The channel has already sought alternatives in the form of Mexican and Turkish soap operas, dubbed into Arabic, which have proven to be popular with Arab viewers.
"Audience ratings for the Turkish soap Sanawat al-Dayaa (Years of Loss) are higher than the Egyptian series, which are sometimes produced for purely commercial reasons and are written and shot hastily, undoubtedly affecting the quality," al-Ibrahim said.
"The Turkish series, on the other hand, has a well-knit plot that attracts the audience."
Responding to claims from some conservatives in Saudi Arabia that MBC's English-language channels 2 and 4 promote a Westernized life style in the Arab world, al-Ibrahim stressed the necessity to understand the outside world and interact with it.
"They have their lives and their traditions, and we have ours. We have to learn to understand and accept the other. But, this does not mean imitating it," he said.
"Our highest viewership rate is in Saudi. Skeptics who disparage the facts are a minority. Throughout 17 years, we have managed to win the trust of all echelons of the Saudi society—conservative and liberal."
Al-Ibrahim recalled the advice the late King Fahd gave him about what should be broadcast on MBC: "You should put on screen what your family could watch, and don't ever incite sedition."
(Translated from Arabic by Sonia Farid). |
