Al Jazeera: A Middle Eastern Enfant Terrible Goes Global

Published 26 Jul 2010
Reference 5691
Topic Strategy
Industry Newspapers Online Media
Region Middle-East
Length 23 page(s)
Language English
Summary

The case describes the success story of Al Jazeera how it developed from a controversial Arab news channel to a globally respected brand. But how sustainable is Al Jazeera's success? Can it truly transform from an Arabic news channel into an international media network? Can it both leverage and demystify the original Al Jazeera brand when catering to global media consumers? And how should it deal with its financial dependence on the Emir of Qatar going forward?

Teaching objectives

The objective of the case is to illustrate the challenges a company is facing as it transitions from a "single product, single region" success story to a global company. It helps the student think about the different growth dimensions (product offering, regional scope) as well as the implications this has for branding and economics. In addition the case illustrates the specific challenges of operating in a developing market environment with strong boundary conditions (cultural barriers etc.)

Keywords
  • Media Innovation
  • Middle East
  • From local to global
  • Brand management
  • TV
  • Al Jazeera
  • international corporation
  • international expansion
  • RD0710
  • AR2010
  • AR0910
  • ADEC