Warner Bros invests in Dubai's OSN in Middle East streaming drive

OSN productions include the Arabic version of hit US show 'Suits'. Photo: OSN

Warner Bros Discovery has announced a minority investment in Dubai's OSN Streaming, driving its presence in the Middle East.

The deal will “reinforce its commitment to the region's fast-growing landscape” the US global media and entertainment conglomerate said on Monday. Warner Bros will pay $57 million for a third of OSN Streaming – known to viewers as OSN Plus – said Joe Kawkabani, chief executive of parent company OSN Group.

"They're making a big statement. They're endorsing the story of OSN," he said, which has gone through big changes over the past three years. It has transformed from a pay TV network to streaming, to the launch of OSN Plus and the separation of OSN TV.

The deal will be conducted in stages and is subject to conditions that include regulatory approvals.

"The angle of the deal is not financial. It's strategic," Mr Kawkabani told The National. Content production, knowledge transfer, and expanding in the region and globally together is the main benefit, he added.

"Where they are counting on us is for everything related to localisation ... localisation of the service, local taste, etc."

Jamie Cooke, executive vice president and managing director for Central Europe, Turkey and the Middle East at Warner Bros, said: “OSN has been a great partner and custodian of our content, making this a natural step for WBD."

“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.”

Jamie Cooke, executive vice president and managing director for Central Europe, Turkey and the Middle East at Warner Bros, left, and OSN Group chief executive Joe Kawkabani. Photo: OSN

Creating a local slate of premium content that is differentiated from the rest of what's available is the goal of the deal, with content that is relatable to Middle East audiences. It will also create content from the region that is original to a global audience, he added.

"They want some specific regional stories, and we believe that the market here as well needs to see premium content basically similar to HBO content, or other premium content Warner produces, but about local stories," Mr Cooke said.

Mr Kawkabani said OSN will be able to expand its investment in local content and “broaden its reach beyond Mena to a global audience” on back of the deal. In the reverse, OSN aims to tap into WBD's about 117 million subscribers. Disney+ carries about 124.6 million subscribers while leading streaming platform Netflix has about 302 million.

Streaming is very fragmented and competitive space, globally and regionally, he explained. "This is why we're looking at Warner Brothers and saying, together, we're better than apart," he added.

Monday's announcement of Warner Brothers' seat at the table on OSN is not an all-sum matter, said OSN's chief executive.

"It's not at the stage today of saying we know exactly that we're going to be producing two things, and it's going to be x and y. No, no, it's a whole slate. It takes time to develop," said Mr Kawkabani. "That takes multiple years.

"The intention is, right now, that the shareholders sit together and put together an actionable plan," he added.

The partnership between the companies extends years before today's announcement. In May last year, OSN signed a deal with Warner Bros that guaranteed it exclusive regional rights to all new content from Max Originals and first premiere rights to Warner Bros Pictures. This opened the path for major films such as Barbie and Dune: Part Two to be on OSN platforms.

OSN Streaming merged with regional home-grown brand, the Nasdaq-listed Anghami, in late 2023, where OSN Group paid $50 million. The deal was set to bring in $100 million, 120 million registered users, and also 2.5 million paying customers.

Before that, the Dubai-based streamer signed a multiyear licensing agreement with HBO, owned by Warner Bros., to stream content from the American pay TV network in 2022. This is in addition to exclusive film catalogue rights last year.

In the case of Warner Bros, Monday's announcement marks its latest investment into a regionally founded and based streaming service. Its previous acquisition was in 2023 when it fully acquired Turkish streaming service BlueSky, Turkey's first local subscription video-on-demand service.

OSN Group operates in 22 countries offering local TV series and films delivering content over platforms including OSN+ and Anghami. Warner Bros is available in more than 220 countries and includes products such as CNN, Discovery Channel and TNT Sports.