Music in the Middle East is moving a mile a minute, as telecommunications companies look at becoming content creators while media companies sign deals with phone makers to package songs with mobiles.
But behind all the commotion loom unanswered structural questions about how the composers who wrote a hot download will get paid.
In most countries, music publishing royalties are collected by a performing rights organisation, an independent entity that acts as an intermediary between copyright holders and those who want to use the rights.
But the movement to set up such an organisation in the UAE has been having trouble getting off the ground, even as recognised brands such as Bertelsmann and Nokia have announced deals to sell downloaded music legally in the region.
"I don't think it is moving at the speed that we would like it to move," said Mohammed Almulla, the executive director of Dubai Media City. "I don't think the market is willing to accept it at this stage." Mr Almulla has been part of the effort to establish a performing rights organisation in the UAE, but said his efforts can only go so far. Dubai Media City does not license radio stations, for example, "so that even makes it more difficult for us to lead an initiative".
Hussain Yoosuf, the managing director of Fairwood/BKP Music in Dubai, said he appreciated Mr Almulla's efforts but disagreed with his assessment of the market's readiness. His company signed a sub-publishing agreement with Universal Music Publishing Group, one of the world's largest music publishers, in August, and he has been campaigning for the establishment of a performing rights organisation to help his company collect publishing royalties for its clients.
"There are lots of discussions happening," he said. "There is a movement happening. It's just a question of which way does it go."
He believes recent developments in the region's media scene add urgency to the cause.
These include the launch of Getmo Arabia last spring - a digital download service jointly run by Avarto Middle East Sales, a subsidiary of Bertelsmann, and the Abu Dhabi Media Company, the publisher and owner of The National - and Nokia's recently revealed plans to release a legal music download service in the Middle East.
"It is one thing for a tin-pot digital retailer to be a pirate website, but I think it's safe to say that names like Nokia and Bertelsmann wouldn't ever want to be associated with the idea that they aren't paying songwriters, or worse, to put themselves at risk of legal action against them," Mr Yoosuf said. "I don't think any global brand would want that, and the truth is, it is afforded within the copyright act to pursue and protect your rights."
Claudius Boller, the vice president of business development for Getmo Arabia, said he had spoken to Mr Yoosuf about paying music publishing rights, but there was little he could do until the UAE sets up a performing rights organisation.
"Today we are not paying because there is no instance that we can pay to, but for every download, we reserve an amount of money in an escrow account, so anytime somebody comes around, here's the money," he said. "It belongs to the composer. And once there is a consortium, we will pay this money out."
Etisalat finds itself in a similar quandary. The UAE's largest telecommunications company is planning to roll out an audio and video download service that will link users' mobile phones to their personal computers by January, according to Mohammed al Mulla, the director for digital media services at Etisalat, who is no relation to the Dubai Media City chief. "A huge library of content will be available," he said, adding that deals with content owners will be announced soon.
He said the company paid their commitment to rights owners, but that there was no official way to pay music publishing rights in the UAE yet.
"The authorities are working on a law," he said. "Once it's ready, we will be obliged to work according to it."
khagey@thenational.ae
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The advice provided in our columns does not constitute legal advice and is provided for information only. Readers are encouraged to seek independent legal advice.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
How to join and use Abu Dhabi’s public libraries
• There are six libraries in Abu Dhabi emirate run by the Department of Culture and Tourism, including one in Al Ain and Al Dhafra.
• Libraries are free to visit and visitors can consult books, use online resources and study there. Most are open from 8am to 8pm on weekdays, closed on Fridays and have variable hours on Saturdays, except for Qasr Al Watan which is open from 10am to 8pm every day.
• In order to borrow books, visitors must join the service by providing a passport photograph, Emirates ID and a refundable deposit of Dh400. Members can borrow five books for three weeks, all of which are renewable up to two times online.
• If users do not wish to pay the fee, they can still use the library’s electronic resources for free by simply registering on the website. Once registered, a username and password is provided, allowing remote access.
• For more information visit the library network's website.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 194hp at 5,600rpm
Torque: 275Nm from 2,000-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Price: from Dh155,000
On sale: now
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Honeymoonish
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
