Events and history, like the desert sands, have ebbed and shifted since those momentous events, during which time the newspaper, along with its sister title The Sunday Times have grown to become two of the most influential and respected newspapers in the world.
The Times has had a presence in the region during some of its most significant founding events, and the UAE's history in the making has found its passage into the columns of the newspaper. For a region steeped in tradition, The Times – with its own special history – would seem a perfect companion.
Today, the newspaper has opened up a new link with the Middle East, thanks to a unique partnership between Saudi owned company SAB Media and Rupert Murdoch's News International.
For now the SAB Group is proud to announce the launch of The Times and The Sunday Times daily newspaper portfolio in the Middle East. This launch signifies the first time that a truly international daily newspaper is available on the morning of publication to readers in this region.
Having been granted a licence to print in the UAE by the region's new Media Council based in Abu Dhabi the new daily newspaper focuses on a diet of international news, sport and a second to none business section, flavoured by the opportunity to provide local advertising to the swelling ranks of international businesses embedded throughout the increasingly influential economic region.
With a current circulation of 18,600 across the region, The Times is available through retailers and to subscribers at home or office from Abu Dhabi to the remaining GCC countries.
The Times in the Middle East contains the depth and breadth of coverage that has become the newspaper’s trademark over its 220-year history. Long regarded as required reading for political and business leaders, The Times and The Sunday Times combine objective news reporting with hard-hitting political analysis, lively commentary and incisive business reporting.
Bringing the new daily titles to the region, The Times is also aimed at signifying a major boost for not only British concerns but international companies in Abu Dhabi through promotions, marketing and specially designed campaigns.
“We are proud that we are now available daily in a region that is destined to play an ever more influential role in the world,” explains Robert Thomson, Editor of The Times. He continued, “Since 1798, when The Times reported Napoleon’s arrival in Egypt, we have invested heavily in our reporting from the region and we now have one of the largest correspondent networks in the Middle East. Printing in Dubai is another significant moment in our history and we look forward to providing intelligent, informative and entertaining news, comment and analysis for many new readers in the region.”
John Witherow, Editor of The Sunday Times added: "We are delighted to have this opportunity to extend the availability of The Sunday Times across this important region. We are proud of our reputation for delivering news and analysis to an intelligent and thoughtful audience. There are over 3.5 million weekly readers of the Sunday Times and this figure will increase further through our partnership with SAB Media in the Middle East."
The confidence in launching the edition in the region, reflects the increasing optimism in centres such as Abu Dhabi and the Middle East as a whole as one of the world's rapidly growing financial and political power spots. It also signifies the increasingly open minded attitudes towards providing quality journalism in the area, expressed by the ruling body of the UAE themselves.
It is such rejuvenated confidence that has also prompted The Times to launch its own Middle East Journalism Awards project, which will be held for the first time next Spring, with the support of the World Editors Forum, who will act as a judging panel for the scheme.
SAB Media is a part of a conglomerate of companies placed under the umbrella of Saudi based SAB Group Holding Co owned by Sheikh Salah Al Belawi. The activities of the group companies cover a wide area of sectors ranging from construction, investments, real estate and retail.
“One reason we’re excited to have the licence to publish The Times and The Sunday Times here is the broad appeal,” said Sheikh Salah Al Belawi. “The newspapers offer advertisers a way to reach the region’s political and business elite, along with an educated and engaged English-speaking audience. From a branding standpoint, The Times name sells itself. There is not another publication that can touch it, in terms of recognition and respect.”