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Alarab's general manager, Jamal Khashoggi (Center R), chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Alarab TV, Fahad al-Sukait (center L) and members of the Alarab TV team, pose for a picture following a press conference in the Bahraini capital Manama, on December 15, 2014. The pan-Arab satellite news broadcaster owned by billionaire Saudi businessman Alwaleed bin Talal will go on air February 1, promising to "break the mould" in a crowded field. (AFP)
Saudi billionaire businessman Prince Alwaleed bin Talal is to launch an Arab satellite news channel on February 1, vowing to "break the mould" in a crowded field.
Bahrain-based Alarab News Channel, broadcasting in Arabic, said Monday it would usher in "a completely new style of news programming in the Middle East and beyond".
Through his Riyadh-based Kingdom Holding Co, Alwaleed has diversified investments that include luxury global hotels as well as international media firms News Corporation and Time Warner.
Established pan-Arab satellite channels have been accused of reflecting the political views of their owners, particularly after the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings against authoritarian regimes in the Middle East and North Africa.
Alarab will enter a market revolutionised by Qatar-funded Al-Jazeera almost 20 years ago when it became the region's first pan-Arab news television broadcaster.
Dubai-based Al-Arabiya, belonging to the MBC Group owned and chaired by Sheikh Waleed Al Ibrahim, a brother-in-law of Saudi Arabia's late King Fahd, followed in 2003.
"Alarab will break the mould of news presentation, becoming a platform for transparent presentation and discussion of the region's most intractable issues," it said in a statement.
Alarab's general manager is a veteran Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Alarab will also be competing against other relative newcomers such as Sky News Arabia, France 24 in Arabic and the BBC's Arabic service.
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