Saudi Arabia is planning tighter regulation of video content produced in the country for YouTube. According to Google, viewers in Saudi Arabia watch three times as much YouTube content as their peers in the US. This has led to an array of online content in the kingdom, which is now under close scrutiny of Saudi […]
Saudi Arabia is planning tighter regulation of video content produced in the country for YouTube. According to Google, viewers in Saudi Arabia watch three times as much YouTube content as their peers in the US. This has led to an array of online content in the kingdom, which is now under close scrutiny of Saudi authorities.
The General Commission for Audiovisual Media will monitor the quality and quantity of content produced in Saudi Arabia on platforms such as YouTube via a code that will include guidelines on alcohol, tobacco, nudity and sexual acts, said Dr Riyadh Najm, the commission’s President. It will also promote private-sector-led investment in the media industry.
Najm said that his organisation would soon issue a manifesto to organise or regulate the work of YouTube channels.
It will include rules and conditions that would be in accordance with the nature of society and laws in this context, Najm said. We are working on embracing these talents and developing their artistic and technical abilities. Licensing would help guarantee quality, he added.
The commission, which was established in September 2012, will issue licenses under the printing and publishing law to any production company operating in the kingdom A new media law that will extend the old law’s oversight to online and broadcasting is also being reviewed by the kingdom’s advisory Shoura Councila king-appointed body that is Saudi Arabia’s closest thing to a parliament.
