News
Erik Gruenwedel
January 10, 2019
The MBC Group, which claims to be largest media company in the Middle East, has hired Johannes Larcher, former SVP of international operations at Hulu, to upgrade its Shahid streaming video service.
MBC, like most major companies in Saudi Arabia, is majority-owned by the government, headed by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The appointment comes about a week after Netflix reportedly agreed to remove an episode of original series,“Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj,” featuring the American stand-up comic and political commentator from Davis, Calif.
The episode was critical of Bin Salman and his alleged ties in the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi – allegations the Saudi royal family deny.
Regardless, an MBC representative told CNBC that Larcher’s hiring is part of a five-year company strategy to inject original and local Arab-language content into Shahid.
“We believe that the long-established relationship of MBC with Arab consumers will enable us to produce even more culturally relevant content that could travel beyond the region,” said the rep.

Related Posts
FilmStruck Launching International SVOD ServiceFilmStruck, Turner and Warner Bros. Digital Networks’ subscription streaming movie service, is launching an international platform, beginning in the United Kingdom. The service will draw primarily on Warner library content and the Criterion Collection, as well as other global and…
Hulu Tops 17 Million SubscribersHulu, the over-the-top video service co-owned by Disney, Comcast, Time Warner and Fox, Jan. 9 revealed it ended 2017 with more than 17 million subscribers. The tally is surprising considering Hulu reported 15 million subs in 2016, and rival Netflix…
Hulu First SVOD Service to Offer Payment through VenmoHulu announced it is the first streaming service to offer payment through the peer-to-peer app Venmo. “At Hulu, we want to bring our viewers choice and flexibility, in as many ways as possible,” read a company statement. “From infusing our…
Fandor Movie Streaming Service Names New Executive PositionsMovie subscription streaming service Fandor has upped Felice Oper to the chief operating officer position. Oper, who previously served as general counsel and chief distribution officer, will continue as general counsel. As COO, Oper assumes oversight of the programming and…