Under the patronage of H.H Sheikh Majid Bin Mohammed Bin R ashid Al Maktoum Chairman of Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, first edition of "MYCONTENT 2010" is set to be held next November. Index Conferences & Exhibitions Org Est - member of Index Holding announced today, during a press conference held in Grand Hyatt, the organization of the event, launched last year, in conjunction with Character Dubai and Dubai World Game Expo.

The launch of MYCONTENT, the leading international entertainment content show in the MENA region, coincides with the rapid growth in entertainment market which according to a recent "PricewaterhouseCooper" study will be worth $2 trillion by 2011.

MYCONTENT will for the first time attract global content producers across all platforms to the region and provide an opportunity to the Middle East broadcasters, producers and distributors to evaluate, buy, sell, co-produce and finance in their own backyard. In addition, the event will also provide professionals involved in the TV, film, animation, comics, music, digital content and media content industry with the perfect platform to do business.

With more than 250 million viewers served by 400 TV channels generating a $4bn market these staggering numbers point to the immense potential and demand in the region, clearly placing the Middle East content industry among the fastest growing markets in the world.

All countries in the MENA region have a large youth segment that is particularly receptive to new media, according to research, the total number of Facebook users in the Middle East and North Africa region reached 11,150,220.

Success of regional social media demonstrated by Jeeran further emphasizes the growth potential in the region. Jeeran was launched in 2000 as the first Arab web hosting community, with a young and futuristic vision to provide Arab users with the latest web technologies and the means to communicate and connect.

MYCONTENT also opens a new horizon of investment for online, mobile and digital entertainment content industry that is seeing a sharp increase in demand with 40 million internet users and over 175 million mobile users. Mobile content including music, games, ring tones, interactive TV is worth more than $45bn globally.
The event is sponsored by Twofour54 and is officially supported by leading international industry associations and local government authorities including Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, Gulf Cooperation Council Joint Program Production Institution, Gulf Radio & TV Organization (Gulf Vision) and International Television Expert Group. Major Exhibitors include Telemundo International (a part of NBC Universal), Charisma TV Productions, Mondo TV and C in Motion among others.

"Preparations for MYCONTENT are underway. There is a tremendous demand for content in the region due to numerous broadcasters emerging all over the Middle East and North Africa. We are pleased with the support and participation of leading content producers from different parts of the world. Opportunities in the content market are tremendous, from TV content, to mobile content, and internet content. The event will also be an opportunity for leading Arab Content Producers to showcase their production and network with their international peers from all around the world," said Abdul Salam Al Madani, president INDEX Holding and Chairman of the Arab Asian entertainment content and licensing alliance.

Laila Suhail, CEO, Dubai Events and Promotions Establishment, said: "we are very pleased to be supporting "My Content 2010", we strongly believe that this initiative will have a positive impact on the overall Character Licensing industry in the region. "My Content 2010" comes in the right time to cater for a demanding industry that has grown proportionally across the region backed by various Cartoon Characters that has gained huge popularity in the past few years. As managers of "Modhesh" Character we understand the need for these exhibitions, hence our continuous support for such initiatives".

"twofour54's sponsorship of MYCONTENT, and Dubai World Game Expo reinforces our commitment to support the development of a sustainable Arabic media and entertainment content creation industry. Events such as these, which bring together some of the region's leading content creators, are important as they provide impetus to the region's aspiring media professionals." said Noura Al Kaabi, head of tawasol, twofour54.

Dubai International Character & Licensing Fair and Dubai World Game Expo are scheduled to be held from 29th November to 1st of December 2010.The events have attracted more than 10,000 visitors and 200 exhibitors in their second edition. Many fruitful business agreements have also been side during both events.

Dubai International Character & Licensing Fair is the only dedicated licensing trade fair in the Middle East, it brings together leading animation producers, content creators, comics, media, advertisers, graphic designers, manufacturers, retailers, licensees, licensing agents, licensors, brands owners and other related industries from the regions of MENA, Indian subcontinent, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Americas to converge for business. The event presents an opportunity to initiate and finalize licensing deals, secure potential leads and create general awareness about licensing procedures to global buyers. Jumjum World characters, based on the adventures of the adorable, exciting and full of life animals, is the platinum sponsor of Character Dubai 2010 is sponsored

The MENA region is rapidly emerging in terms of licensing and merchandising with the toy market that is growing at an impressive 11.8% per year and is estimated to be worth $1.5bn. Retail sales of licensed products in the entertainment category are expected to be worth $21.7bn worldwide.

"A steady platform where we can create and feature new business is what we had experienced in participating at the Dubai Character and Licensing Fair. The last two years of participation turned out to be a remarkable venture for Fanar Production and this has given us unequaled determination to consolidate our position as a frontline player in the regions animated series. We strongly believe that Dubai Character and Licensing Fair will help us achieve our strategic objectives." Adnan Omar Al Obthani, CEO of Fanar Production.
Animation is also seeing tremendous growth in the Middle East and the emerging markets of China and India. As these territories invest in building world-class digital media industries, animation is one of the key elements to ensuring the viability and infrastructure is in place for digital film, television and games.

"Lammtara are pleased to announce their participation once more in the forthcoming "Character and Licensing Fair" 2010 having successfully exhibited at the fair since its inception. We are proud to exhibit once more and to reconfirm our desires to support the Fair as we feel this is an integral part of maintaining on going exposure for the FREEJ brand be-it from a Local as well as an international perspective." Mohammed Harib, CEO, Lammtara

FREEJ; the Middle East's first 3D animated series is the brainchild of Mohammed Saeed Harib who also directs the fifteen standalone episodes of fifteen minutes each, launched September 2006 on national television. LAMMTARA FZ-LLC, the owner of FREEJ brand and an award winning production studio that has put the UAE on the global map of entertainment through the production of the popular TV series FREEJ in the Middle East.

Major deals have been signed during Character Dubai 2009 including a $22m agreement signed between Emari Toons and Speedy Productions. The agreement concentrates on producing 22 episodes that display facts and challenges from each and every Arab country.

This year's event is going to witness competitions and events for young designers and producers. In addition, it will be a great opportunity for them to showcase their talents and to present their work to leading businesses in the region. A dedicated Exhibition hall for the public will be open for three days and will showcase shows, character appearances, comic drawing competitions and public bazaar.
The Dubai World Games Expo is the biggest and the only dedicated event for interactive games in the Middle East. DWGE highlights interactive platforms for all participants to enjoy the blend of cutting-edge games, interactive entertainment, edutainment, infotainment, and business opportunities.
DWGE is sponsored by Abu Dhabi-based content creation community twofour54, the world famous Epic Games and Computer Game National Institute of Tehran - Iran and is officially supported by Dubai Culture and Arts Authority and China Joy- China Digital Entertainment Expo.

Talking about their sponsorship Epic Games Vice President of Business Development Jay Wilbur said It's a pleasure to once again sponsor the Dubai World Game Expo", said Epic Games Vice President Jay Wilbur. "The region is rich in both game development talent and as a gaming consumer base. Epic Games is honored to be invited to participate in the 3rd annual DWGE."

The regions emergence of local game developers like Vertex Animation Studio and Pixel Haze games are proof to the estimated $750m worth of the digital game industry in the Middle East. With a population of 338 million and considered among one of the wealthiest regions, the Arab world is marked as a huge market specifically for online games. The current situation where there is a lack of real massively multimedia online game - MMO, several international browser based games like Travian, Bight Fight and Gladiatus have achieved success further stressing the unexplored online game market.

Console based games are also on the fast track with the UAE console game market netting a reported sales of 4.45 million units worth DhDhs17.78m last 2009.

Online game sector in the Middle East is heading towards a big share of the global market as the world's fastest growing media segment and is expected to be worth $13bn by 2013. The latest trends and products within the Arab internet, mobile, and console games segments will be the main focus during the Dubai World Game Expo. Given the region's mainly young population and aggressive investments into IT infrastructure, internet gaming has the potential to become a major income generator in this part of the world.

"Sony Computer Entertainment has a long standing commitment to the games market in the Middle East. It has been encouraging to see the development of the first locally created games on PlayStation(R)3, and we strongly believe that there is potential for new and innovative games to appear during the next few years from the local community." said Paul Holman, Vice President - Research and Development, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe

"It is our pleasure to support events like the DWGE 2010 that promotes youth sportsmanship in digital gaming. We are proud to support the organizers of this event for the second year." - Nahla El Mallawany - Channel Manager MTV Arabia

DWGE also hosted leading speakers from the industry including John Cash, Technical Director-Blizzard Entertainment and Paul Holman, Vice President Research and Development, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. The Dubai World Game Summit was an opportunity for young Arab Game Developers to learn about the latest trends in game design and development. Students from different colleges around the region benefitted from this opportunity as the event is crafting the way for young Arab Game desiners who are interested in exploring this fast growing industry. The Expo also hosts the largest Arab cyber athlete competition, the "World Game Championship" which is becoming a key platform for the growth of Professional gamers in the region.