With the boom of the internet usage in the UAE, many consumers are turning to buying and selling their goods online. The competition between portal website is intensifying and now consumers have plenty of options to choose from.

One of the most popular website in the UAE is souq.com. Souq.com is a UAE based website that acts like an auction, where buyers and sellers bid for products. With a username and password, you are ready to go and start your shopping experience online with anything listed on this portal such as mobile phones, jewelry, cars, tickets, and many other products, new and used. Kristy Melia, the sales and marketing manager of souq.com, confirms the “great growth” they are experiencing in the market and how they have a customer base of more than 400,000 members.

Competition is present in this industry with another portal in the market. Dubizzle is considered a market leader in classifieds in the UAE, with items ranging from property for sale or lease, jobs, to community services such as car lifts. JC Butler, the managing partner of Dubizzle, states that they had a healthy growth in terms of revenues and customer subscription and that they play at the top of the game in the e-commerce competition.

The latest entrant in the Dubai market is the Lebanese portal Elmazad.com. Elmazad.com has its headquarters in Lebanon and has operations in Dubai with plans to expand to other nearby countries. The website invites users “buy and sell anything free on the largest online market in Lebanon and UAE”. “Anything” can be items like mobile phones, clothes, cars, accessories, and even real estate properties. The COO of elmazad.com in Lebanon, Hisham Al Ashkar, sees Dubai as a great potential for the business to grow as it is still focusing on brand awareness with its marketing campaign through SMS, Facebook and other magazines.

According to company spokespersons, all of the above websites have experienced a huge growth in their customer base. Nowadays, consumers are shifting their buying behavior to online websites or auction sites for many reasons.

One reason is the cheap prices that one can get through such websites. The exact products found in the market are being sold for a discount in dubizzle and souq.com. Unwanted gifts from jewelry to business pens are sold online for less than their original prices in store, and trust us, there are a lot!

In addition, these websites have done a lot to develop their offerings to attract more customers. Souq.com for example introduced a free shipping promotion to encourage more customers to spend online.

The recent economic downturn has also affected much of the regular shopping that is going on in the marketplace. Many people are moving in and out of the country, requiring to sell or to buy their household goods. During financial distress, consumers would turn to buying used products at a cheap price or selling their unwanted stuff to get some extra cash.

Last but not least, while the prospects of online shopping are definitely better during hard times, it is the quality of experience that is more important. Just like window shopping is fun for some of us, so is shopping online. With just a few clicks of a mouse and some searches for the item that you’re looking for, the product becomes yours! You don’t have to worry about getting stuck in a traffic jam, finding a parking space for your car, or not finding what you’re looking for in the mall. One of the many ways the internet continues to make life simpler.

12th February 2010 – Dubai UAE: Dubai launches the first female DJs network, 22.10, to become the first forum of its kind in the region. Aimed to promote, enhance and develop a network of female DJs and aspiring DJs from across the region, 22.10 will pave way to build on the existing pool of female DJs while recruiting new members.  Founded and spearheaded by Dubai’s very own leading lady on the decks, DJ Lady Red Label, 22.10 is a group dedicated to meet the market demands and provide clients with professional female DJs in a market previously dominated by male DJs. 22.10 will also become the first platform for female DJs to meet regularly and build on their presence within the market segment. With professional female DJs already members, 22.10 will offer emerging DJs training workshops and opportunities to learn techniques including mixing and editing molding them to become professional, top-notch DJs in the market. Alongside the DJ recruitment, 22.10 will also reach out to include Dubai-based female musici
ans and provide a collaboration to work with the DJs forming a unique platform to provide female artists across the market.

Coming from the UK, DJ Lady Red Label began her career at the tender age of 15 by mixing music at local house parties where she quickly developed a keen interest in the field. As she mastered her music mixing techniques and growing determination to pursue it as a full time career, DJ Lady Red Label continued to appear regularly at various private functions before taking to the London West End club scene where she performed at a number of exclusive venues including Capisce, Click, The Yacht, Browns, Suga Suga, Pop and Trap. In 2000, DJ Lady Red Label moved to France and got her first residency working with other DJs and MCs to form a sound system incorporating various styles of underground urban and dance music.

Returning to London in 2002, where the West End music scene was becoming more mainstream dance and urban styles and moving further away from underground styles, DJ Lady Red Label broadened her repertoire to include everything from classic, soulful, funky, deep, tech house and broken beats, to Latin and Afro beats, old school soul, funk, and hip hop.

In 2005, DJ Lady Red Label moved to Dubai where she appeared at various private and corporate events as well as numerous clubs and lounges like Trilogy and Tangerine. Having just completed a 6 month residency in Cavalli Club, DJ Lady Red label has recently played alongside Cash Money and Kenny Dope (MAW) at the ‘Time Out Comes Home’ festival. She also held a 15 month residency at Park Hyatt’s idyllic venue, The Terrace and is currently the residing DJ at Dubai’s hippest bars; Calabar and CinCin performing there every Thursday.

Established to fulfill the market requirements and promote the growing number of female DJs and female musicians in the market, 22.10 aims to scout the country in search of female talent and build to become the only female DJ and singers’ network in the Middle East. 22.10 will also offer a range of services including consultation and booking of regionally and internationally female DJs while nurturing, training and supporting the emerging female DJs and musicians locally. Offering diverse genre of music styles, 22.10 will cater to a range of clients including private functions, corporate entertainment and regular club and lounge appearances.
 
“When it comes to DJs and entertainment, Dubai is considered to be an entertainment hub with regular appearances of international artists. Previously dominated by male DJs, the market dynamics are evolving and we have witnessed a growing demand for female DJs and performers. Our objective is to expand on this by proving a networking circuit for both local and international female artists. With that in mind we intend to offer and nurture aspiring female performers and provide them with training opportunities, forums and dialogues to grow the female segment” said DJ Lady Red Label, Founder, 22.10.

With extensive DJing experience in the UAE, the pool of talented female DJs at 22.10 have played at some of Dubai’s trend setting hotspots including the Cavalli Club, the Address Hotel Downtown Burj Khalifa, Hyatt Regency Dubai, Chi at The Lodge, paving way to the new breed of female spinners in the city.

Pan Arab Intellectual Property Rights Media Awards-Winners

Winners of the 2009 Pan Arab Intellectual Property Rights Media Awards were announced last night (January 24, 2010) at a gala ceremony held at the Sheraton Hotel, Doha, Qatar, under the support of Qatar’s Ministry of Justice. Established by the Business Software Alliance (BSA), the leading global organisation that is the voice of the global commercial software industry and its hardware partners before governments and in the international marketplace, the Award recognises media’s contributions to promoting a safe and legal digital society throughout the Arab World.
The awards were given in five contest categories including ‘Best Opinion Piece,’ ‘Best Investigative Piece,’ ‘Best News Article,’ ‘Best Feature Article,’ and ‘Best Interview,’ with a winner and runner up named for each.
The winners of the ‘Best News Article’ category were Mohammad Al Farah, Al Sharq newspaper, Qatar – first, and Dana Halawi, Daily Star newspaper, Lebanon – second; winners of ‘Best Opinion Piece’ category were Fadi Al Halabi, Future TV (Tawasul), Lebanon – first, and Samir Mahmoud, Shabab Maser newspaper, Egypt – second; winners of the ‘Best Feature Article’ category were Bashar Abu Leil, Al Watan newspaper, Qatar – first, and Mohammad Ghazal, The Jordan Times, Jordan – second.       ‘Best Investigative Piece’ category awards went to Ayat Mohamad Said Al Fiki, ICT News newspaper, Egypt – first, and Naushad K Cherrayil, Gulf News newspaper, UAE – second. Winners of the ‘Best Interview’ category were Inas Ismail, Al Aalam Al Youm newspaper, Egypt –first, and Mahmood Nasheet, Akhbar Al Khaleej Newspaper, Bahrain – second.  

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