A new venture called BigTime Arabia, based in Dubai, specialises in mobile text message, or SMS, question-and-answer games. Roland Beckmann-Kunz, the company's general manager, discusses what BigTime Arabia's approach to the scourge of "spam" messages will be as the company rolls out SMS games and marketing campaigns across the Middle East.
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q&a
q A lot of consumers in the UAE are not happy about spam SMS. Would you agree this is a problem?
a Exactly. You would like to get something that you're interested in. I'm a gadget fan, so if people were to send me information about gadgets, that would be interesting for me. But obviously I'm not interested in Arabic text messages for washing powder. I find it boring: I use washing powder, but that's about it. And I don't speak Arabic.
q How is your company, formed in October as a joint venture between BigTime Entertainment Group and the Libra Group, making sure it is not creating spam?
a By providing a very targeted way to engage with people. You have to find out what language the person speaks. Many telecoms operators now have a policy on how they can contact people. So [consumers] can opt in or out.
q Talk us through how a typical SMS game would work.
a One that has proven very successful works similar to a question-and-answer game like [the TV show] Who Wants to be a Millionaire. You would send in premium-priced SMS [in answer to a series of questions]. And at the end of the day, week or month you can also win a prize.
q What kind of market do you see in the Middle East?
a We have a very high penetration of mobile devices; people are highly engaged, so they never leave the house without their mobile phones. And at the same time, they are very open to innovative and playful engagement. So this is a big market here in the Middle East.
q Are you in talks with any telecommunications companies here?
a We're basically in talks with everyone. The clients that we would have are the telecoms as well as media companies. So we would work with any of those.
q There's a lot of excitement about mobile apps. Doesn't that mean SMS marketing is a thing of the past?
a Why use an app if you can actually engage in a conversation? The innovative thing is to engage people with messages, so that it feels like a conversation. And using low-end technology would make sure that every single phone can use it.
q Obviously, you have plans to launch campaigns in the UAE. Are you targeting any other Middle East markets?
a Yes of course: Saudi; Egypt; Oman; every market around. [The Middle East and North Africa] has very high penetration rates, especially in the Middle East. And people have a very good relationship with their mobile phones. They carry them everywhere. And Africa, in the last few years, has been the fastest-growing mobile market.
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Company%C2%A0profile
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The bio
Studied up to grade 12 in Vatanappally, a village in India’s southern Thrissur district
Was a middle distance state athletics champion in school
Enjoys driving to Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah with family
His dream is to continue working as a social worker and help people
Has seven diaries in which he has jotted down notes about his work and money he earned
Keeps the diaries in his car to remember his journey in the Emirates
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Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
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TERMINAL HIGH ALTITUDE AREA DEFENCE (THAAD)
What is THAAD?
It is considered to be the US's most superior missile defence system.
Production:
It was created in 2008.
Speed:
THAAD missiles can travel at over Mach 8, so fast that it is hypersonic.
Abilities:
THAAD is designed to take out ballistic missiles as they are on their downward trajectory towards their target, otherwise known as the "terminal phase".
Purpose:
To protect high-value strategic sites, such as airfields or population centres.
Range:
THAAD can target projectiles inside and outside the Earth's atmosphere, at an altitude of 150 kilometres above the Earth's surface.
Creators:
Lockheed Martin was originally granted the contract to develop the system in 1992. Defence company Raytheon sub-contracts to develop other major parts of the system, such as ground-based radar.
UAE and THAAD:
In 2011, the UAE became the first country outside of the US to buy two THAAD missile defence systems. It then stationed them in 2016, becoming the first Gulf country to do so.
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
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2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
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Delhi Daredevils 174-4 (20 ovs)
Mumbai Indians 163 (19.3 ovs)
Delhi won the match by 11 runs
Sreesanth's India bowling career
Tests 27, Wickets 87, Average 37.59, Best 5-40
ODIs 53, Wickets 75, Average 33.44, Best 6-55
T20Is 10, Wickets 7, Average 41.14, Best 2-12
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UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
UAE jiu-jitsu squad
Men: Hamad Nawad and Khalid Al Balushi (56kg), Omar Al Fadhli and Saeed Al Mazroui (62kg), Taleb Al Kirbi and Humaid Al Kaabi (69kg), Mohammed Al Qubaisi and Saud Al Hammadi (70kg), Khalfan Belhol and Mohammad Haitham Radhi (85kg), Faisal Al Ketbi and Zayed Al Kaabi (94kg)
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Decca
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 201hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 320Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.7L/100km
Price: Dh133,900
On sale: now
The specs: 2017 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn
Price, base / as tested: Dhxxx
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Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
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Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
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The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
Company profile: buybackbazaar.com
Name: buybackbazaar.com
Started: January 2018
Founder(s): Pishu Ganglani and Ricky Husaini
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech, micro finance
Initial investment: $1 million
