According to The Peninsula, a report by ictQatar cites that Qatar's overall internet penetration stands at 82%. The country's internet usage includes emailing, downloading music and movies, watching videos, and researching goods and services representing the most popular usages.

Ready to embark on an ambitious expansion plan, Doha-based Al Jazeera channel is planning to change its legal status as a public entity and convert itself into a 'private organisation devoted to public interest'.

According to The Peninsula, the number of teenagers in countries where there is deep Internet penetration prefer to read newspapers online, while offline newspaper sales are witnessing a fast decline. As digital media grows, such consumption will continue to grow, according to Jeff Cole, Director of the World Internet Project, who also commented on user-generated content and how it has transformed everything and reversed media trends.

The Peninsula reports that around 200 bigwigs in the international film industry have confirmed their attendance at the Financial Times Business of Film Summit "Rethinking Strategies in an Evolving Landscape" which will be held in Doha on March 22 and 23. The two-day summit will explore the funding and commercial opportunities that exist within the global film industry in today's tough market conditions.

The Peninsula reports that despite the global financial downturn, advertising spend rose 11 per cent in Qatar last year compared to 2008. The market survey conducted by IPSOS has shown that ad spend figures climbed from $212 million in 2008 to $235 million last year. Banks and financial institutions remained top advertisers, followed by the telecommunication service providers, automobile dealers and real estate firms.

Although the Doha exhibition has been gaining popularity with a steady rise in the number of exhibitors and visitors, the publishing industry in the Arab world remains hit by the internet and visual media according to The Peninsula.

The Peninsula reports that during the event ‘All about Blogging’, a Google official has stated that Arabic is not even among the top ten languages used in blogs, despite the fact that Arabic ranks 5th in the top 10 spoken languages. However, although not many people are blogging in Arabic, a lot happen to be reading.