News

Warner Bros. Discovery Invests In OSN Streaming To Expand MENA Reach

The move follows an exclusive deal between OSN and HBO in 2022 and its recent acquisition of a majority stake in music platform Anghami.

Published

2 years ago

March 24, 2025

Nour Nasir

warner bros discovery invests in osn streaming to expand mena reach

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has acquired a stake in OSN Streaming Limited, a subsidiary of the OSN Group. The investment is part of WBD’s growing commitment to the Middle East and North Africa streaming market. The deal will be finalized in phases, pending regulatory approval.

For OSN, the partnership strengthens its leadership position in the region’s highly competitive streaming landscape. The company has been expanding its content portfolio through long-term partnerships, including an exclusive deal with HBO in 2022. Earlier this year, OSN also acquired a majority stake in music streaming platform Anghami, further diversifying its digital offerings.

Sheikha Dana Naser Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, Group CEO of KIPCO and Chairperson of OSN, highlighted the importance of the partnership:

“We are delighted to be announcing this deal between WBD and OSN, which […] affirms the success of the strategy that KIPCO laid out to focus on and strengthen our streaming business, even in a competitive market environment. The transaction builds on OSN’s strong growth trajectory and market leadership in MENA’s streaming industry, strengthening its competitive position as one of the region’s premier entertainment destinations”.

Jamie Cooke, Executive Vice President & Managing Director for Central Europe, Turkey, and the Middle East at Warner Bros. Discovery, emphasized the importance of local content alongside global hits:

“It’s our goal to tell the greatest stories, whilst innovating our products and distribution channels […] We recognize that alongside enjoying the latest global hits, regional audiences also want stories from and about the region that reflect their own cultures and experiences. Through this deal, we’re delighted to announce that both OSN and Warner Bros. Discovery will invest in high-quality, locally produced content, ensuring a richer and more diverse offering for viewers”.

Also Read: Best Video Streaming Services In The Middle East

OSN Group CEO Joe Kawkabani echoed this sentiment, calling WBD’s investment a major milestone:

“We are thrilled to welcome WBD as a strategic partner. As a global leader in entertainment, WBD brings unparalleled expertise, innovation, and a rich portfolio of iconic brands. This investment is a significant milestone in OSN’s growth journey, reinforcing our dedication to delivering unique and compelling content. It also bolsters our commitment to expanding our investment in local content, broadening its reach beyond MENA to global audiences”.

WBD’s streaming services, Max and Discovery+, now boast nearly 117 million subscribers worldwide. The company’s increasing footprint in MENA is part of a broader expansion strategy that began with the opening of its Dubai office in 2012. Since then, WBD has steadily built its presence in the region, ensuring that MENA audiences have access to world-class entertainment.

News

Microsoft Plans $10 Billion-Plus Gulf Expansion Despite Iran Conflict

Security is shaping Microsoft’s approach, from resilience work with governments to what it will say about how the money splits by country.

Published

4 days ago

September 24, 2026

Nour Nasir

Microsoft

Microsoft is planning more than $10 billion of investment across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait through 2030, Vice Chair and President Brad Smith told Reuters, calling the spending schedule aggressive. The Iranian conflict that began on February 28 has not persuaded the company to scale back.

“We’re sustaining all the investments we planned to make before this conflict started, and we are in fact adding to them,” Smith said. The $10 billion-plus total does not, however, show how large those additions are.

The investment, which Smith described as part of Microsoft’s continued infrastructure expansion, is aimed at cloud and AI infrastructure and at the company’s growing regional operations. Microsoft also intends to put more than $400 million into subsea and terrestrial connectivity across the Middle East by 2030.

The spending fits the region’s own ambitions too. Gulf governments have been investing heavily in AI infrastructure as part of a push to diversify their economies beyond oil and gas and turn themselves into global technology hubs. Major cloud and AI providers have been drawn in part by the land and relatively low-cost energy on offer.

Microsoft is widening its partnerships with regional AI companies, though not on identical terms. In 2024, it invested $1.5 billion in Abu Dhabi-based G42 for a minority stake, and Smith currently sits on G42’s board. Saudi Arabia’s Humain and Qatar’s Qai are working with Microsoft on selected priority areas, but Smith said the company does not plan to make capital investments in either.

Also Read: Egypt’s Mobile Wallets Are Booming, But Cash Still Has Power

The conflict has added another strand to Microsoft’s work in the region. Since it began, Smith said, the company has supported regional partners with digital resilience assessments, and it is now working with Gulf countries through a digital resilience initiative focused on preparedness and the protection of critical data.

So far, the company has given no country-by-country breakdown of the investment, citing security among other factors. So while the headline figure is public, how Microsoft divides the spending among the four countries is not.