The Holy Month of Ramadan is an important time for television viewership in the Middle East, with a huge surge in TV viewership, particularly, for Arabic dramas. However, according to Meltwater, an analysis of social media reactions around popular MBC TV channel’s Ramadan programs, show that people in Arab countries were more engaged with Arab entertainment and reality shows during Ramadan 2016.
An analysis of the comments on Twitter and Facebook between June 6, to July 8, 2016, using Meltwater social media monitoring and analysis tools, reveals that the most talked about MBC show during this Ramadan was ‘Selfie’, a sketch comedy show that tackles controversial issues. ‘Selfie’, received 57 percent of mentions on social media.
‘AlSadma’, or the Shock, a prank show that uses shock therapy to examine human behavior in certain situations, was the second most talked about show generating 27 percent of social buzz.
In the third place is Egyptian prankster Ramez Galal’s ‘Ramez Plays with Fire’ show, that features several celebrities including Steven Seagal, receiving 16% of mentions in comparison to other MBC Ramadan programs.
“Every Ramadan, there is a sharp increase in TV viewership. With the help of Meltwater tools we can analyze the sentiments, demographics, and social media conversations about shows on popular TV channels to understand their consumer reach and engagement. This gives brand and marketing managers solid information to make intelligent decisions regarding advertising and promotional campaigns for their brands,” said Zubair Timol, Area Director for India, Middle East & Africa, Meltwater.
The highest amount of conversations about the MBC shows took place on Twitter (73 percent) followed by Facebook at (24.09 percent).
