The Nielsen Company, a global leader in consumer research and media information, recently announced the opening of its new regional head-office for the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan at Dubai Media City (DMC), the region's leading media hub and a member of TECOM Investments.

Amarket research company engaged in providing marketing and media measurement information, analytics and industry expertise, Nielsen's new headquarters will complement its strong presence in the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan (MENAP) region.

Mohammed Abdullah, Executive Director, Dubai Media City, said: "As the region's leading media hub, our success over the past eight years is characterized by our continuous commitment to meeting the dynamic needs of the fast growing media sector. The presence of The Nielsen Company, a global leader in market research and information, validates the status of Dubai Media City as the key regional hub for media leaders.

"We constantly explore fresh avenues in our committed endeavour to provide the best in class services to our customers and business partners. We are confident through its path-breaking initiatives The Nielsen Company will add enormous value to the media cluster."

With diversified business interests in FMCG, telecom, automobiles, finance, tourism and government departments, The Nielsen Company has more than 1,300 employees in 29 offices across 13 countries in the region.

Piyush Mathur, Regional Managing Director for Middle East, North Africa, of the Nielsen Company, said: "Dubai Media City will serve as a highly strategic base for our activities and bring us closer to our clients while helping us streamline our geographical operations and align with our clients' niche regional requirements. We will continue to focus on delivering greater value to clients and we believe our location at Dubai Media City will enable us to serve them better. We see the current downturn as a pit stop in a car race. This is the time to refuel, check your tires, fasten the seatbelt and prepare for the growth ahead."

Recently, in conjunction with Dubai Media City, The Nielsen Company announced the names of some of the largest companies in the Middle East and North African (MENA) region that have signed up for its Nielsen On Line Market Intelligence service. The media tool is based on a precise site-centric measurement technology that provides competitive benchmarking and market-level information on web sites for the publishing and advertising industries across the world.

Dubai Media City was one of the initial projects launched to promote Dubai's vision of diversifying its economy through the creation of knowledge-based business clusters. Since its inception in 2001, Dubai Media City has successfully established itself as a solid platform for regional and international media companies seeking a presence in the region.