The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) is partnering with the regional video on demand service, STARZPLAY, to set up the company’s headquarters in Abu Dhabi.
The partnership is part of ADIO’s $545 million Innovation Programme, an initiative of the Abu Dhabi government’s Ghadan 21 accelerator programme.
HE Dr. Tariq Bin Hendi, director general, ADIO, said, “Abu Dhabi’s creative sector is rapidly taking shape with significant government investment, a steady flow of skilled talent and sound infrastructure to fuel the ambitions of creators and businesses. The media industry is coming together with a cohesive and elevated offering to welcome and support companies from all around the world.
Establishing its headquarters in Abu Dhabi will enable STARZPLAY to further strengthen production of regionally relevant original content.
“As a long-term partner, we are here to help businesses aligned with our vision and fast-track their progress through support for R&D, while ensuring they are suitably equipped to grow sustainably on the global stage,” Bin Hendi added.
Since inception, STARZPLAY has accelerated its growth with a record year in 2020 in terms of users, revenues and content consumption.
STARZPLAY will ramp up partnerships with the city’s media and creative ecosystem to offer exclusive, in-demand entertainment.
Building on existing cooperation with entities like Abu Dhabi Media, twofour54 and Image Nation Abu Dhabi, STARZPLAY will partner with local production houses and animation studios to produce compelling original content.
With ADIO’s partnership, STARZPLAY will build a next-generation private cloud in Abu Dhabi to meet growing consumer demand.
The company will offer it to other media companies as a fully managed and turnkey over-the-top solution. Additionally, STARZPLAY will build its technology team to support Abu Dhabi operations.
Maaz Sheikh, CEO & Co-Founder, STARZPLAY, said, “With our new headquarters in Abu Dhabi, we are excited about producing more original content through enhanced media partnerships.
“Building the new cloud facility will bring us closer to our fans to serve them with richer and more personalised experiences. These are pivotal steps in our evolution as a regional tech and media champion and we are grateful to ADIO for supporting our strategic growth vision.”
