📈 MBC Shahid Fuels MBC Growth as MENA’s Top Streamer

FY 2025 earnings highlight strong growth, improving profitability, and a streaming-led strategy | Streaming in Short – W12

Mar 20, 2026

⏱️ This week’s streaming news in MENA and around the world, in 5 min.

📈 MBC SHAHID continues to grow as MBC Group reports strong results

👉 MBC Group reported +28.5% revenue growth in FY 2025, reaching SAR 5.4B, driven by the continued expansion of its streaming platform, MBC Shahid.

📍 MBC Shahid revenues grew +28% YoY to SAR 1.38B. Both subscriptions (SVOD +25%) and advertising (AVOD +27%) contributed to growth. The platform also improved retention, expanded internationally, and developed new formats.

💡 Losses are decreasing (SAR 78.7M vs. 129.1M last year), showing a clear path to profitability. For MBC, streaming is becoming the core of its business.

📱 Disney+ adds vertical video to improve mobile discovery

👉 Disney+ has launched “Verts,” a new feature that lets mobile users swipe through vertical short clips from its catalog, with creator content expected in the next phase.

📍 The feature sits in the app’s navigation bar and makes discovery faster and more visual. Users can swipe through scenes, save titles, or jump directly into full playback, with recommendations powered by an algorithm.

💡 For Disney+, vertical video is a way to increase daily engagement on mobile and prepare for short-form and creator-led content.

As Ramadan is over, Ipsos is finalising a dedicated guide to explain why viewing habits changed during the holy month in UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

And with the major conflict affecting the region, understanding audience behavior is more important than ever. It helps streaming platforms adapt their content strategies and better support their viewers.

What insights will you get?

When and how people watch during Ramadan
Where audiences watch news during the day
What drives subscriptions and churn
How audiences react to advertising
Whether microdramas are gaining traction in MENA
Ramadan-specific viewer personas

Interested in the Ramadan 2026 Streaming Handbook? Get in touch to receive full details on the scope and pricing👇

Get the full report details

📊 Digital entertainment remains strong during times of crisis

What happened?

👉 A new regional analysis shows that during past crises, digital behaviors increased, with digital entertainment (including streaming) being one of the most resilient sectors.

Key details:

During uncertain times, people shift to digital habits. Content consumption increases, and home-based entertainment becomes a priority.
Streaming platforms benefit from higher engagement and better retention.
Data shows that digital entertainment grew by +65% in previous crises, driven by more time spent at home and the need for easy, on-demand content.

Why it matters?

🎯 In these periods, streaming platforms that offer relevant content like news are better positioned to retain users and grow long term.

📰 SRMG brings its news brands into one network

SRMG has launched SRMG News, grouping all its news platforms under one structure, including Asharq News and several digital publications.

The move centralizes content, technology, and distribution, with a stronger focus on digital, video, and streaming news formats.

🎬 Google invests in microdramas for Google TV

Google and Range Media Partners are developing a slate of short-form vertical series, produced by top Hollywood creators, set to launch on the Google TV app.

The focus is on mobile-first with dozens of microdramas in development across genres like reality, romance, and youth culture.

💰 Amazon upgrades and increases the price of its ad-free tier

Amazon is rebranding its ad-free Prime Video offer as “Prime Video Ultra,” increasing the price from $3 to $5 per month starting April 2026.

The new tier includes 4K streaming, more concurrent streams, and higher download limits.

🎬 Disney sets new direction with streaming at the core

Disney’s new CEO Josh D’Amaro outlined his priorities, focusing on storytelling, technology, and stronger integration across the company.

The strategy puts Disney+ and streaming at the center, with a focus on more interactive experiences and a more unified “One Disney” approach.

🎬 Half of movies leaving Netflix disappear from streaming

A new analysis from Reelgood shows that 51% of movies removed from Netflix do not appear on any other major streaming platform.

Out of nearly 7,800 titles, around 4,000 were not picked up elsewhere, while free platforms like Tubi captured most of the remaining titles.

🇭🇰 HONG KONG: Filmart puts AI at the center of the industry

Hong Kong’s Filmart (March 17–20, 2026) is heavily focused on artificial intelligence, positioning it as a key driver of future growth for film and streaming.

The event features 28 sessions dedicated to AI, covering use cases across production, storytelling, and content creation, alongside emerging formats like microdramas and short-form video, with strong participation from tech players and AI startups.

🏴‍☠️ The Dinosaurs, with Morgan Freeman (Netflix): From the first dinosaurs to the last, this epic documentary series examines their 165 million years on Earth and the forces that shaped their evolution.

🏢 20 years ago, The Office (US) premiered on NBC. Developed by Greg Daniels and adapted from the UK series by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the show follows the daily lives of employees at Dunder Mifflin, a paper company in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Mixing mockumentary storytelling with awkward humor and relatable workplace dynamics, the series became one of the most influential sitcoms of its time and found a second life on streaming, where it continues to attract new audiences worldwide.