Sam Barnett has been involved with MBC since 2002. Originally working as a consultant on the launch of what is now the Al Arabiya news channel, today he is the COO and general manager of the MBC Group. During his tenure, MBC has developed into one of the most robust commercial broadcasters operating in the Middle East.
Under Barnett’s supervision, the network has become an expert at positioning and branding its channels and now boasts a portfolio spanning the broad stroke of the region’s diverse population demographic.
In an interview with
Digital Broadcast
last month, Barnett claimed that 106 million people were watching MBC channels everyday, a fact that he has leveraged to help steer the organisation through the difficulties of the current economic climate.
“We are an efficient machine. We’re commercial, we’re profitable, we’re cashflow positive, and we get the ratings,” he says.
Barnett has also been one of the leading voices calling for greater audience measurement to boost the confidence of advertisers and the coffers of (successful) free-to-air channels.
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