Hundreds of entries of television and radio productions inundated this year's Cairo Arab Media Festival, reports Al-Ahram Weekly.

This year's festival took place from November 11 to November 15 at the Media Production City in Cairo. The festival, originally called the Cairo Radio and Television Festival, first started in July 1995, and originally promoted television productions. It is now a large number of entries in the radio show category as well. “Think of it as Egypt's answer to the Emmy Awards,” suggests Al-Ahram's Kamal Sultan. Eighteen countries, seven of them non-Arab, participated in this year's festival.

The 2009 Cairo Arab Media Festival also sponsored the Naguib Mahfouz Competition, which awarded the best television and radio scripts.

The latest wave of television and radio shows in the Middle East is not exclusive to the host country. “The festival has been particularly supportive of Syrian and Gulf drama productions, now believed to be on par with Egyptian [productions],” observes Sultan.

While Egypt continued to lead the number of participants with 67 radio and 238 television entries, Syria and Jordan posted respectable numbers as well. Syria entered 17 radio shows and 44 television shows, while Jordan sent nine radio and 32 television shows to the festival.

The television show entries spanned a wide range of genres such as historical television series, social soap operas, and sitcoms.

The contests are not the sole attraction of the event. Sultan also comments on the importance of the marketing and networking that occurs at the media festival. “As broadcast companies shop for hit shows, artists from across the Arab world get to meet and new friendships often turn into durable business propositions,” states Sultan.

Indeed, these durable business propositions are spreading throughout the Middle East as television audiences are growing. Recently, Arab countries capitalized on a failed Turkish venture.

Gümüs, a soap opera which bombed in Turkey, aired on the Dubai-based Middle East Broadcasting Centre (MBC) from 2008-2009. Arab audiences know the television program as Noor, as the producer dubbed the Turkish show into the Syrian dialect of Arabic.

“The show drew appeal from all demographics through storylines focusing on a large, multi-generational family whose many members lounge through love stories,” writes Pierre Tristam for About.com.

Tristam analyzes the cultural implications behind the hit soap opera. Noor tackles subjects, which may trigger controversy in conservative Muslim countries, such as pre-marital sex, abortion, and alcohol consumption. “Religion is subordinate to the challenges and pleasures of everyday life,” notes Tristam of the hit television show, which attracted large audiences in Saudi Arabia.

The inevitable backlash originated from Saudi clerics. In 2008, Sheikh Saleh Al-Laheedan, chairman of Saudi Arabia's Supreme Judiciary, called for the “murder of satellite television executives who bring such shows as Noor to Saudis' televisions.”

The clerics may have to take a back seat to the market, as the television program's success reached all corners of the Arab world. The finale episode garnered a record 85 million Arab viewers, and Noor's popularity sparked the production of a 2009 feature film based on the hit television series.

Tristam adds that The Saudi Gazette showed concern for the country's youth, worrying that “many seemingly innocent soaps may also affect children adversely.” Adverse effects or not, the influence of television and radio continue to expand rapidly throughout the Middle East and North Africa.

The UAE swept the awards at the 15th annual Arab Media Festival (AMF) held in Cairo and Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI) claiming the biggest share, reports Business 24/7.

Abdullatif Al-Gergawi, General Manager of Dubai TV, said the UAE participation in the Arab Media Festival in Cairo underlined the keen interest among the UAE media professionals, on being actively aware of the Arab media landscape, and offering their expertise to develop the Arab media industry.

Ahmed Al-Mansouri, Manager of Sama Dubai, said, "The Arab Media Festival in Cairo is a great platform that attracts the artists and creative minds in the Arab World. The UAE's presence was strongly and expressively felt at this event through a number of quality productions.”