Dubai: Sony Music Entertainment, the producers and distributors of music from some the biggest artistes in the global music industry, have officially launched operations in Dubai to cover the regional market.
Kevin Ridgley, managing director of Sony Music Entertainment Middle East (SMEME) told Gulf News that while they will not be producing music here, the company would be promoting content from signed international artistes from the United States, India and the Philippines.
Speaking of local music, he said that it is something to consider.
"For sure, Arabic music is something that we will be in. Whether that happens right away or down the road a little bit, we're still evaluating," Ridgley said.
He said the Arabic music market is in a difficult position at the moment, both on its own terms and due to the economic recession. However, "As committed as we are to music and the local culture, we will have to be in Arabic music," he added.
The plans would include signing regional artistes and distributing their music around the world.
Not a lot of investment has gone into the launch as the company will not be engaged in music production, at least initially, according to Ridgley.
Currently, it will be working with the international roster of artistes. Ridgley said the focus would be to regionally promote available content.
Top artistes signed with the company include Michael Jackson, Celine Dion, the estate of Elvis Presley, AC/DC, Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, while pop artistes include Shakira, Britney Spears, Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Justin Timberlake and P!nk.
Speaking of local market possibilities, he said, "Our expectations are that digital sales will pick up quite a lot. Physical sales have gone down, especially in the past two to three months. However, the UAE was not affected too hard."
Daniel DiCocco, president of Sony Music Entertainment Asia, the immediate supervisors of the Dubai office said earlier in a media report, "Even in these challenging economic times, there continue to be opportunities for expanding the reach and influence of our Sony Music artists around the globe vie both traditional and innovative avenues."
