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The Arab world: E-Content for a Networked Society

Global Arab Network - - Hannan Taha

Tuesday, 09 June 2009 20:08

The_Arab_world_E-Content_for_a_Networked_Society

The Arab world continues to increase its global influence, and its many visionary organizations, government entities and individuals are working towards showcasing their views, talents and services online.

Three organizations in Qatar are showing that the digital gap in e-content can be closed and quality online content can inform, educate and engage those in the Arab region and connect them to the rest of the world.

Qtel, The Doha Debates and Al Jazeera were all recently awarded the Arab eContent Award for 2009 at a ceremony in Bahrain. The Arab eContent Award is inspired by the World Summit Award (WSA), to select quality e-content and promote creativity and innovation in the Arab World. ictQATAR nominated eight finalists for WSA, who were then automatically entered into the Arab eContent Award. Qtel won in the e-Business & Commerce category, Al Jazeera in e-Entertainment, while The Doha Debates won the Jury Distinction for e-Inclusion & Participation. The other award categories are e-Government, e-Learning, e-Health, e-Culture and e-Science.

ictQATAR's e-Inclusion team led the nominations for the awards from Qatar, going through a careful analysis of different websites before zeroing on the final eight websites. So what are the three honorees doing that make them distinguished among their peers?

According to Qtel, they have made a committed effort to making the website focused on its customers' needs. Adel Al Mutawa, Group Head, Communications, Qtel says, "Winning the Arab eContent Award is very gratifying for Qtel, because we have put a great deal of thought into the growth of our website, and a great deal of care in ensuring the navigation structures remain simple and easy-to-understand. Our website is constantly improving and developing. Every aspect of our business is reflected on it, ranging from the latest share information for investors, through to the details of new promotions."

Qtel's website (www.qtel.com.qa) supports a customer care section, where people can pay bills, view their bills, and order new services. Its corporate portal includes detailed business information and media alerts. For the youth, Qtel has also created interactive micro-sites for leading edge services like Mozaic TV+ and Mozaic Mob. Qtel's micro site, MyTones on Qtel's Mozaic Mob, uses an interactive interface to enable people to download ringtones for their phones directly from the web. With a large range of music, Islamic tones, poetry and comedy tones, customers have been able to build up a repertoire of ringtone collections to suit their personalities.

When it comes to Aljazeera (www.aljazeera.net), which is the most visited website in the Arab world and is among the top 200 most visited in the world, getting news in both Arabic and English to the general public and engaging them is their primary focus. With images, video, audio, flash, documents and easy links, the website's tool bar helps the users to conveniently navigate the site by providing rich and well structured content. The site's harmony and simplicity in color and graphics also make for a positive user experience.

The Doha Debates website (www.thedohadebates.com), matches the Debates' ground breaking image. Known for debating the most controversial issues in the Arab world each month in front of a local audience and on international television, the website aims to keep the debate going and provide new insights. Visitors can watch the Debates or download podcasts, read about the speakers, and can also see how the Qatar Foundation Headquarters building is transformed into a television studio each month. The webcasts have become a very popular feature on the website with around 3,000 downloads and debate viewings each month.

Tanya Sakzewski, Producer for the Doha Debates who oversees the content for the website says, "The website has been designed to be user-friendly so people can access information easily. Visitors can find out everything from what was said at a debate to how the local audience voted. They can then access the opinion polls and find out what people in the wider Arab world think about the Debate topics and whether they agree with the audience vote."

The winners of the award were honored by Sheikh Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Supreme Committee of Information and Communication Technology as part of the opening ceremony of the Bahrain International eGovernment Forum 2009 on May 25, 2009. Reem Al-Mansoori, ictQATAR's e-Inclusion Manager sums up, "A networked society needs good interactive content that can be easily accessible. The winning websites pave the way for more enriching user experiences aimed at a connected and informed nation."

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