GLOBAL MEDIA GIANTS TO PROVIDE INTERNSHIPS FOR IBDAA WINNERS

Prestigious internships with global media giants are part of the rich array of prizes for winners of the Ibdaa Media Student Awards 2002, Dubai Media Citys annual regional Awards that recognize outstanding student media talent. The prize sponsors, announced today, include CNN, Walt Disney, Saatchi and Saatchi, Team/Young and Rubicam, Virgin Radio, Film Works, Gulf News and Jumbo Electronics.

DUBAI: July , 2002

Prestigious internships with global media giants are part of the rich array of prizes for winners of the Ibdaa Media Student Awards 2002, Dubai Media Citys annual regional Awards that recognize outstanding student media talent.

The prize sponsors, announced today, include CNN, Walt Disney, Saatchi and Saatchi, Team/Young and Rubicam, Virgin Radio, Film Works, Gulf News and Jumbo Electronics.

The second Ibdaa Awards have invited entries from media students in a vast region extending from the Middle East to the Indian sub-continent and CIS countries to South Africa. The Awards have eight categories this year: Animation, Journalism, Radio, TV, Film Production, Photography, Graphic Design and Advertising.

Winners of the Ibdaa Awards will be able to gain work experience with leading global companies. The awards in the eight categories are as follows:

TV Documentary - Three-month internship at the London office of CNN

Film - Two-week internship at the Dubai office of Disney

Radio - Two-week internship at the Paris office of Virgin

Advertising -- Two-week internship at one of the worldwide offices of Saatchi and Saatchi

Graphic Design - Two-week internship at the Dubai office of Team/Young & Rubicam

Animation - Two-week internship at the Dubai office of Film Works

Journalism - Month-long internship at the Dubai office of Gulf News

Photography - Sony Mavica camera provided by Jumbo Electronics.

There is a vast pool of untapped young media talent in the region," said Abdulhamid Juma, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Media City and Coordinator General of the Awards. Ibdaa is part of our efforts to unearth the best and brightest media talent from our regions educational institutions and expose them to the international and regional media industry. By inviting international media players to provide internships for winners of the Ibdaa Awards we are also trying to build bridges between young talent and the industry," he added.

The deadline for entries for the Awards is the end of September this year. A panel of regional and international media experts will select a shortlist of 24 entries, three in each category. The eventual eight winners of the Ibdaa Awards will be felicitated at a gala ceremony to be held on November 4, 2002.

The Ibdaa Awards were launched last year under the patronage of His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE Defence Minister. The first Ibdaa Awards attracted a total of 824 entries from 18 countries around the world. There were 250 entries from the Indian subcontinent, 171 from South Africa, 50 from the Levant, 20 from Egypt, 15 from GCC countries, and 18 from Australia and New Zealand.

This year, Dubai Media City is conducting a wider promotional campaign to reach media students in more key media markets. It is currently conducting Ibdaa roadshows in media schools and universities in Iran, Turkey, Sri Lanka and Pakistan in addition to the UAE, South Africa, Egypt, India, GCC countries and the Levant.

The Second Ibdaa Media Student Awards has attracted the sponsorship of leading media companies in the region. Key sponsors include the Gulf News, Motivate Publishing and Saudi Research and Publishing Company (SRPC). The UAE chapter of the IAA will support the Ibdaa Awards by assisting with the screening and shortlisting of entries and coordination of the judging process.

About Dubai Media City

Strategically located in Dubai at the crossroads of the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, Dubai Media City is rapidly emerging as the region's media hub. The City provides an advanced infrastructure and supportive environment for media-related businesses to operate globally out of Dubai. Dubai Media City is the place where every kind of media business, specifically - Broadcasting, Publishing, Advertising, Public Relations, Research, Music, New Media and Production and Post Production will thrive. The facility offers an environment that allows companies and individuals to operate with collective synergy and freedom. Dubai Media City - The Freedom to Create

For further information please contact:

Amira Abdulla
Assistant Marketing Manager
Dubai Media City
Tel: +971 4 3914578
Fax: +971 4 3914589
e-mail: amira.abdulla@dubaimediacity.co.ae
web: www.dubaimediacity.com