Showtime Arabia
 | |
| Company type | Joint venture between KIPCO (79% stake) and CBS Corporation (21% stake) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Telecommunication |
| Founded | 1996 |
| Defunct | 2009 |
| Fate | merged with Orbit Communications Company into Orbit Showtime |
| Headquarters | Dubai Media City, Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
Key people | Faisal Al Ayar (Chairman) Marc Antoine d’Halluin (CEO) |
| Products | Direct broadcast satellite |
| Website | ShowtimeArabia.com |
Showtime Arabia, as it was called to distinguish itself from its U.S. counterpart (Showtime), was a subscription television service in the Middle East and North Africa. It was a joint venture between KIPCO (79% stake) and CBS Corporation (21% stake), CBS Corp being a minor partner.[1][2] The company was incorporated in the Cayman Islands and had its headquarters at Dubai Media City in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.[3]
Showtime Arabia was one of the pay TV networks in the Middle East and North Africa.[4] It had the exclusive rights to broadcast the Barclays Premier League in the Middle East and North Africa. On 12 July 2009 the company announced a merger with Orbit Communications Company into Orbit Showtime.
Technical
When SHOWTIME launched, it some of its channels were TMC, MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon, TV Land, Paramount, Style, Discovery and Hallmark. Gulf DTH F.Z. L.L.C. was the operating company behind the digital pay TV broadcaster, Showtime Arabia. Its broadcast facilities were based at Dubai Media City in the United Arab Emirates and its uplink teleport station is Samacom, the monopoly uplink provider in the UAE. Showtime Arabia used Irdeto Access Conditional Access technology, to encrypt its DTH channels over satellite and the OpenTV interactive platform that runs on primarily UEC set-top boxes.
Showtime Arabia Channel lineup
| Category | Channel(s) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Promotional Channel | ShowToday | ||||
| Documentary Channels | Animal Planet | Discovery Science | Discovery World | Nat Geo Wild | |
| Nat Geo Adventure | |||||
| General Entertainment Channels | ShowComedy | ShowComedy Extra | ShowSeries | ShowSeries Extra | |
| ShowShasha | BBC Lifestyle | BBC Prime | Super Comedy | ||
| America Plus | E! | Universal Channel | Syfy Universal | MBC+ Drama | Style Network |
| Fashion TV | Travel Channel | ||||
| Kids Channels | Boomerang | Cartoon Network | Disney Channel Middle East | ShowKids (KidsCo) | |
| JimJam (04 - 16 UTC) | |||||
| Movie Channels | ShowMovies 1 | ShowMovies 2 | Super Movies | ShowMovies Action | |
| ShowMovies Comedy | ShowMovies Kids | Hallmark Channel | Turner Classic Movies | ||
| Music Channels | MTV Music | VH1 | |||
| News Channels | Bloomberg Television | CNN International | CNBC Europe | Sky News | |
| Pay-Per-View Channels | ShowCinema TVMAX 1 | ShowCinema TVMAX 2 | ShowCinema TVMAX 3 | ||
| Sports Channels | ShowSports 1 | ShowSports 2 | ShowSports 3 | ShowSports 4 | |
| Extreme Sports Channel | |||||
| High Definition | SHOWTIME HD | ||||
- * 43 Channels** + 1 Promotional Channel
- ** 12 General Entertainment Channels – 7 Movie Channels – 5 Sports Channels – 5 Documentary Channels – 5 Kids Channels – 4 Pay-Per-View Channels – 3 Music Channels – 3 News Channels
Orbit Communications Company Merger
On July 12, 2009 Showtime Arabia and Orbit Communications Company announced a merger that will create the “biggest Pay-TV platform” in the Middle East and North Africa.
The newly formed company is an equal partnership that will offer 70 exclusive channels featuring new movies, sports, series, Arabic content and international shows.
New customers can subscribe to packages featuring Showtime Arabia's and Orbit Communications Company's programs, while existing subscribers will be able to either retain or upgrade their content. The company will offer HD channels, video on demand and other interactive services.
Logos
-
Logo used in 1996 by Showtime Arabia when first launched
-
Showtime Arabia's former logo prior to 1 April 2007 relaunch
-
Showtime Arabia's current logo, in use since 1 April 2007 relaunch
See also
References
- ^ "About Showtime". Retrieved 30 March 2008.
- ^ "Company Profile (Showtime)". Retrieved 30 March 2008.
- ^ Showtime Arabia Channel Line-up with channel number!
- ^ K.S. Ramkumar. "Showtime Arabia Introduces New Attractive Platform". Arab News. Retrieved 30 March 2008.
- ^ "Showtime Packages". Retrieved 8 July 2008.
External links
- Orbit Showtime Network's homepage
- Packages of Orbit Showtime Network
- Viacom's homepage
- Dubai Media City
- NileSat Satellite