FREE ZONE UPDATE

twofour 54

Abu Dhabi is home to a new media content creation zone called 'twofour54'. Representing the geographical co-ordinates of Abu Dhabi, twofour54 aims to establish the city as a centre of excellence for Arabic content creation that is internationally renowned.

The launch of twofour54 has created new industry opportunities for the region, by providing a collaborative and fully-equipped centre that brings together local, regional and international companies from across the breadth of the film, broadcast, digital, publishing and music industries. With some of the world’s leading content companies already onboard and announcing major plans, twofour54’s advanced eco-system offers production facilities, infrastructure, training and a new business incubator – all on one site – for the development of world-class Arabic content by people from the Middle East region for its 300 million Arab audience.

twofour54 is based near Khalifa Park in Abu Dhabi. A 200,000 square metre waterfront site in the Mina Zayed area of the city has been earmarked for twofour54’s permanent campus, which should be completed within five years. twofour54 is located within a campus style environment that promotes cooperation and creative partnerships amongst the companies involved.

twofour54 tadreeb

twofour54 tadreeb will be the region’s premier vocational training academy, inviting media and entertainment professionals and graduates to gain and develop skills across a comprehensive range of media disciplines. twofour54 tadreeb is a dynamic partnership between twofour54 and global media players to offer world-class courses led by highly experienced instructors. All the academy’s offerings are outcome-driven, practically focused training programmes. Courses begin in January 2009.

twofour54 ibtikar

twofour54 ibtikar provides support and funding for new businesses and promising creative ideas across print, online, mobile and television platforms in the UAE and the broader MENA region. twofour54 ibtikar offers two funding solutions, the iFund and the Creative Lab. The iFund offers start-up funding, business-planning and operational support to entrepreneurs who want to launch new ventures in Abu Dhabi. The Creative Lab provides seed funding, development guidance, and strategic planning to creative talent with exciting new content and creative ideas.

twofour54 intaj

twofour54 intaj supplies state-of-the-art production and post-production facilities, media asset management, broadcast and technical support services to its partners. This includes five high-definition studios fully equipped with the latest technologies, the region’s first media asset management services, as well as a highly experienced pool of dedicated operations and engineering professionals.

twofour54 tawasol

twofour54 tawasol provides holistic support services through its Shared Services and Property Management departments. Together, they form a one-stop-shop facilitating the relocation and establishment of content organisations in twofour54.

All establishments in twofour54 are required to be licensed under the Business Licensing Regulations currently in force. When a licensee is engaged in disseminating content from the zone, they are also required to hold a Dissemination License in addition to their Business License.

Form of registration

• Branch
• FZLLC (no minimum share capital)

Types of license:

1. Business License
2. Dissemination License
   • Television Broadcasting
   • Print media
   • Internet, Radio & other Media

Type of facilities:

Costs:

A one time registration fee of AED 2,500 (indicative, subject to change) is payable. The license fee and the facility costs were not available up to the time of printing.

(This article is compiled by our Partner, Stany Pereira and our Senior Consultant – Free Zone Services, Ms. Jilu Jacob)