Live Broadcasting Has a Home in The Middle East
Facebook made us comfortable sharing the written word with friends. Twitter helped us enhance our communication skills by limiting us to 150 characters per message. Instagram taught us that a picture really is worth 1000 words or around 1 billion dollars, as evident from the acquisition by Facebook in 2012. Now all of these companies are eager to attract users to the next big thing in social media：live broadcasting. Here in the Middle East and North Africa, they may need to get in line.
Created in 2014， 7nujoom is the Middle East & North Africa (MENA)’s first live broadcasting platform. The app and website attracts over one million users each day.
7nujoom, which means “seven stars” is focused on Arabic culture so the content on the platform is representative of the region. You won’t see scantily clad women, or harsh rebukes of government and religion on 7nujoom. What you will see is thousands talented musicians, comedians, MCs, dancers, and other artist who have a knack for entertainment. While anyone can sign up to view shows, to be a broadcaster you must go through an in depth application process to prove you have what it takes.
Even if you lack the skills, it may be worth applying since the top broadcasters combined raked in over $500,000 (USD) last year. Jamela, one of the top 10, has only been broadcasting for six months and already makes more than she did at his last full-time job.
Where does all this money come from? 7nujoom allows users to give digital gifts to their favorite broadcasters to show their appreciation. Each gift has a price tag and range from one 7nujoom coin to thousands. ($1 USD = 100 7nujoom coins)
We know from that past that hype over social media comes and goes, but as online content continues to swing toward video, and users in the Middle East continues to grow 7nujoom may be a company to keep an eye on.