The 9th Convergence Summit has kicked off in Amman. The two day event commenced with a welcome speech by event organizers, the Arab Advisors Group, as well as an opening address by HRH Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan. The first day of the summit features presentations by several industry figures, including Ghassan Hasbani, CEO of the Saudi Telecom Company, Steve McCaffery, VP and General Manager at Motorola Home Business, Muhammad Al Alawneh, Enterprise and Data Solutions Manager at Umniah, and Yousef Abu Mutawe, CTO at Zain Jordan. 

UAE-based satellite broadcasting company YahLive and Abu Dhabi Media (ADM) have agreed to broadcast six channels in HD throughout the region. According to a company executive, ADM had been looking to braodcast in HD for quite some time. "If you're running a media business, you have got to decide whether you run ahead of consumer demand and play some role in being a catalyst in the market or follow it," said Malcolm Wall, the chief executive of ADM "The uptake of HD seems very strong. We'll be looking at whether to extend that offering to some of our other channels, particularly our sports channels."

According to an industry executive, the regional television industry faces a shortage of satellite capacity because of the number of channels converting to high definition. Many local stations are converting to high definition broadcasts, and the existing satellite capacity could be exhausted by 2017. "We won't have enough capacity - between all the satellite operators - to keep up with the demand of all broadcasters converting to HD," said Mohamed Youssif, the chief executive of the satellite broadcaster YahLive in Abu Dhabi.

The US-based 3D entertainment channel 'High TV 3D' is to launch in the Middle East and North Africa, courtesy of UAE satellite broadcaster YahLive. "I am delighted to bring our viewers not only the highest level of HD programming but also the only 3D channel in the Middle East today. The revolution in TV entertainment technology combined with the amazing price drops, has driven consumers to acquire 3D smart TVs at a phenomenal rate. Now millions of viewers in the Middle East and North Africa will be able to enjoy High TV 3D, only on YahLive," said Mohamed Youssif, chief executive, YahLive.