ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 6, 2025--
Multiply Group (ADX: MULTIPLY), the Abu Dhabi-based investment holding company, today launches Multiply Media Group (MMG), uniting the three market-leading out-of-home (OOH) companies under its portfolio to create a new media powerhouse headquartered in the UAE. The combination of BackLite Media, Viola Media and Media 247 under Multiply Media Group represents a significant move that will shape the future of tech-enabled media in the UAE and beyond.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250606708480/en/
Samia Bouazza, GCEO and Managing Director of Multiply Group, said: “The launch of Multiply Media Group represents the most significant media consolidations in the UAE. By bringing together market-leading media assets under a single AI & tech-driven group, we are reinforcing our commitment to long-term value creation and shareholder returns. MMG lays a strong foundation for our global ambitionsand forward-looking investment strategy.”
MMG was launched at the World Out of Home Organization (WOO) Annual Congress in Mexico City, and simultaneously it lit up the world through a global takeover across key DOOH media, illuminating cities and screens worldwide with its bold presence. The move reflects the global expansion of Multiply Group, the $7.2 billion holding company, which is part of IHC, the most valuable holding company in the Middle East with a market cap of over $240 billion. The newly consolidated group will serve as a launchpad to capture regional and international opportunities arising in the media sector through MMG portfolio businesses.
MMG will drive performance and innovation across the OOH media sector, reshaping the UAE’s media landscape through scale, AI, and strategic partnerships. To achieve its mission, MMG will invest in high-potential media assets, catalyse growth with innovation and create synergies across its portfolio through strategic investments.
Jawad Hassan, Head of Media and Communications Vertical at Multiply Group, said : “For several years, Multiply Group’s ambitious growth strategy for the media sector has taken us from an integrated portfolio of three industry leaders to a media powerhouse with vast potential to redefine the entire regional media landscape in ways that will bring immediate impact and long-term value for clients. Through MMG, we stand ready to embrace the emerging trends in our industry, particularly the transformative role of AI, and we will continually look to invest in technologies that enable us to create dynamic and innovative campaigns.”
The scale of MMG includes 3,000 advertising units across the UAE, including 75+ premium assets on Dubai’s Sheikh Zayed Road, which are backed by long-term partnership agreements with the Road and Transport Authority (RTA) (Mada Media) in Dubai and The Department of Municipalities & Transport (DMT) in Abu Dhabi.
James Bicknell, CEO of Multiply Media Group, said: “Multiply Media Group launches as a transformative force in out of home media — a powerhouse that unites some of the region’s most strategic media assets under one bold vision. With MMG, we are not simply scaling up — we are scaling intelligently. Our mandate is clear: deliver context at scale, and reach audiences where it truly matters, when it matters most. MMG is engineered to be agile, data-led, and deeply integrated, enabling our clients to engage audiences with greater relevance, responsiveness, and resonance than ever before. This is more than media — it’s momentum.”
The launch of MMG follows a recent strategic agreement between Multiply Group’s media vertical and Al Arabia, Arabian Contracting Services Company (Al Arabia) to create a joint venture (JV) to invest in the global out-of-home (OOH) advertising sector. Multiply Group, also announced a recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Saudi Media Company (SMC) – with these two strategic moves underscoring the global expansion potential of Multiply’s portfolio brands.
Multiply Group’s other media holdings include Yieldmo, a contextual mobile ads platform, and Firefly, North America’s leading digital Taxi-Top company. The group completed the acquisition of Viola Communications, a marketing and communications firm, in 2021.
ABOUT MULTIPLY GROUP
Multiply Group PJSC is an Abu Dhabi-based investment holding company that globally invests and operates in transformative, cash-generating businesses.
Known for its trademark growth mindset, Multiply Group will continue to deploy capital across its two distinct arms, both of which follow a disciplined approach to investing and ensure consistent, sustainable value creation for our shareholders in the short-, medium- and long-term:
Multiply, the investments and operations in long-term strategic verticals, currently investing and operating in Mobility, Energy & Utilities, Media & Communications, Wellness & Beauty, and Retail & Apparel. Anchor investments provide long-term recurring income, through which bolt-on acquisitions are made.
Multiply+, the Group further engages in opportunistic, sector-agnostic investments, via mainly minority stakes in private and public markets.
For more information, visit www.multiply.ae
ABOUT Multiply Media Group
Multiply Media Group (MMG) is a media powerhouse committed to driving performance and innovation across the sector. Our ambition is limitless, but our approach is precise. We invest in high-potential media assets, catalyse growth through innovation, and create synergy across our portfolio through strategic investment and smart leadership.
MMG includes BackLite Media, Viola Media, Media 247, and Purple Printing. Together, they form an integrated ecosystem built to deliver scale, precision, and sustained value.
MMG provides the clarity required to lead meaningful transformation in the industry. Through targeted investment in technology, talent, and innovation, we develop future-ready products and services — anticipating client needs before they emerge. By aligning capabilities across the group, we multiply impact, accelerate innovation, and drive long-term growth.
More impact. More innovation. Greater momentum.
For more information, visit www.mmg.global
Source:AETOSWire
Multiply Group lights up the world with the launch of Multiply Media Group, creating a media powerhouse headquartered in the UAE (Photo: AETOSWire)
SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Ultra-conservative José Antonio Kast secured a thumping victory in Chile’s presidential runoff election Sunday, defeating the candidate of the leftist governing coalition and setting the stage for the country’s most right-wing government in 35 years of democracy.
With over 95% of the vote counted, Kast won more than 58% of the votes as Chilean voters overwhelmingly embraced his pledge to crack down on increased crime, deport hundreds of thousands of immigrants without legal status and revive the sluggish economy of one of Latin America’s most stable and prosperous nations.
His challenger, communist candidate Jeannette Jara who served as leftist President Gabriel Boric’s popular labor minister, had just over 41% support.
“Democracy spoke loud and clear,” Jara wrote on social media, saying that she called Kast to concede defeat and congratulate him on his successful campaign.
Kast’s supporters erupted into cheers in the street, shouting his name and honking car horns.
His campaign spokesman, Arturo Squella, declared victory from the party headquarters in Chile's capital of Santiago.
“We are very proud of the work we’ve done,” he told reporters. “We feel very responsible for this tremendous challenge of taking charge of the crises that Chile is going through.”
Kast’s election represents the latest in a string of votes that have turfed out incumbent governments across Latin America, vaulting mainly right-wing leaders to power from Argentina to Bolivia.
On the surface, the two candidates in this tense presidential runoff could not have been more different, fundamentally disagreeing on weighty matters of the economy, social issues and the very purpose of government.
A lifelong member of Chile’s Communist Party who pioneered significant social welfare measures in Boric’s government and hails from a working-class family that protested against the 1973-1990 military dictatorship, Jara was a dramatic foil to her rival.
Kast, in contrast, is a devout Catholic and father of nine whose German-born father was a registered member of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi party and whose brother served in the dictatorship. He had previously struggled to win over moderate voters in two failed presidential bids.
His moral conservatism, including fierce opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion without exception, had been rejected by many in the increasingly socially liberal country. The admiration he has expressed for the bloody military dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet also sparked widespread condemnation in his campaign against President Boric four years ago.
But in the past few years, fears about uncontrolled migration and organized crime have roiled the country. Enthusiasm for a hardline approach to crime spread, dominating the election and boosting Kast's law-and-order platform.
Supporters hold a portrait of Jose Antonio Kast, presidential candidate of the opposition Republican Party, after results show hime leading in the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025.(AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Supporters of Jose Antonio Kast, presidential candidate of the opposition Republican Party, celebrate preliminary results after polls closed for a presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
Supporters react to early results at the campaign headquarters of Jeannette Jara, presidential candidate of the ruling Unity for Chile coalition, in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Jeannette Jara, presidential candidate of the ruling Unity for Chile coalition, speaks after voting during the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Supporters of Jose Antonio Kast, presidential candidate of the opposition Republican Party, celebrate preliminary results after polls closed for a presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
Jose Antonio Kast, presidential candidate for the Republican Party, waves after voting in the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
Voters arrive to a polling stating during the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Jeannette Jara, presidential candidate of the ruling Unity for Chile coalition, shows her ballot during the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Jose Antonio Kast, presidential candidate for the Republican Party, prepares to vote during the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Jose Antonio Kast, presidential candidate for the Republican Party, arrives to vote during the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
A voter casts his ballot during the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
Luis Soto prepares to vote in the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Richard Ferreira, a Venezuelan residing in Chile, waits for polls to open during the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Police guard the Mapocho station polling station during the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Presidential candidate Jeannette Jara of the Unidad por Chile coalition addresses supporters during a rally ahead of the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
A man cycles past campaign ads for presidential candidate Jose Antonio Kast and Argentina's President Javier Milei reading in Spanish "Our future is in danger" ahead of the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Presidential candidate Jose Antonio Kast of the Republican Party addresses supporters, from behind a protective glass panel, during a rally ahead of the runoff election in Temuco, Chile, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
A campaign banner reads in Spanish "Neither Jara nor Kast will make our lives better, don't vote, rebel and fight" ahead of the presidential runoff election in Santiago, Chile, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Presidential candidates Jose Antonio Kast of the Republican Party and Jeannette Jara of the Unity for Chile coalition shake hands during a debate ahead of runoff elections in Santiago, Chile, Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
