Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI)

Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI), also branded as Dubai Media, is the principal state-owned media group of the Government of Dubai. Established by Law No. 8 of 2003 as a public entity with legal personality, it manages a wide portfolio of media assets across television, radio, print, distribution, digital news and streaming. Its outlets serve Arabic- and English-speaking audiences in the UAE and across the wider region, while also functioning as a key vehicle for promoting Dubai’s official image, development agenda and regional media-hub strategy.

Media assets

Television: Dubai TV, Sama Dubai, Dubai One, Dubai Sports, Dubai Racing

Radio: Noor Dubai, Radio Dubai

Publishing: Al Bayan, Emarat Al Youm

Online: Emirates 247

Ownership and governance

DMI is wholly owned by the Government of Dubai. Before its formal establishment in 2003, Dubai’s government media operations were managed directly through government media structures. Law No. 8 of 2003 created DMI as a public entity with legal personality and the authority required to achieve its objectives.

In 2022, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, issued Law No. 6 of 2022 affiliating DMI to the Dubai Media Council and endorsing its objectives, tasks and organisational structure. The same legal package included Decree No. 11 of 2022 appointing Sheikh Hasher bin Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum as Chairman of DMI, while Mohammed Sulaiman Al Mulla was appointed Chief Executive Officer.

The Dubai Media Council, chaired by Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, sets the strategic direction for Dubai’s media sector and oversees DMI’s development. The Council’s authority was further expanded under Law No. 29 of 2024, and its board was reconstituted in 2025 under Sheikh Ahmed’s chairmanship, with Mona Ghanem Al Marri as Vice Chairperson and Managing Director. These changes strengthened the Council’s role in developing, regulating and steering Dubai’s media sector.

DMI’s executive leadership is appointed within this government-controlled structure. As of mid-2026, Mohammed Sulaiman Al Mulla serves as Chief Executive Officer, supported by sectoral executives including Salem Belyouha, Chief Executive Officer of Media Content; Abdulla Almansoori, Chief Executive Officer of Corporate Support; Shaikha Ahmad, Chief Executive Officer of Human Resources; and Faisal Abdalla, Chief Executive Officer of Printing and Distribution. This governance structure places strategic and editorial control firmly within the Dubai government’s institutional media architecture.

Source of funding and budget

DMI’s detailed financial statements are not publicly disclosed. Based on SMM-retained interviews conducted in March 2024 and May 2025 with journalists and analysts familiar with the UAE media landscape, the group operates on a mixed funding model, drawing a significant share of income from advertising, commercial partnerships, production, printing and distribution activity, while also receiving supplementary government funding.

That subsidy is understood to represent less than half of the group’s overall annual budget, giving DMI a degree of operational flexibility while maintaining strategic alignment with the state. Third-party revenue estimates exist, but they are not based on audited public accounts and should be treated with caution.

Editorial independence

There are no publicly available editorial statutes or explicit government censorship protocols formally imposed on DMI’s outlets, but editorial control is exercised through ownership, governance and senior appointments. The government’s influence is channelled through the Dubai Media Council, DMI’s appointed leadership and the broader UAE media-regulatory environment.

The editorial line across DMI’s platforms consistently aligns with government narratives, avoids critical or investigative coverage of UAE authorities, and gives prominence to official priorities, public-sector achievements, Dubai’s economic agenda and the emirate’s global image-building. DMI outlets sometimes carry human-interest, service-oriented, business, lifestyle and regional coverage that appears lively by local standards, but such coverage remains within the parameters of permissible discourse and avoids substantive challenge to state policy or leadership.

No domestic law or independent body safeguards or verifies the editorial autonomy of DMI’s media. The broader UAE media environment, governed by federal media, cybercrime and online-content legislation, constrains independent and critical journalism. DMI is therefore widely regarded as an arm of the state’s communication system, reinforcing Dubai’s official image at home and abroad.

AI and digital policy

SMM found no evidence that DMI has published a dedicated public AI governance or editorial-use policy as of mid-2026.

The group has, however, pursued significant digital transformation. In January 2026, DMI launched Dubai+, a new digital streaming platform offering live television channels, original productions, exclusive series, sports content, international titles and family-safety features. The launch was presented as a strategic step in advancing Dubai Media’s digital transformation and strengthening Dubai’s position as a regional and global hub for content creation.

DMI also selected Comcast Technology Solutions’ Comcast Media360 platform to power a new end-to-end video streaming platform for Dubai Media’s full suite of channels, including Dubai TV and Dubai Sports. The deployment is designed to support content acquisition, processing, OTT streaming delivery, monetisation and user experience across DMI’s digital services.

These developments are part of a wider Dubai Media Council agenda to accelerate the digital transformation of Dubai’s media sector, expand audiences for Government of Dubai media content, support local content production, and strengthen Dubai’s position in the digital media economy. However, SMM identified no DMI-specific public framework governing the use of AI in editorial production, verification, attribution, recommendation systems, audience analytics, synthetic-media labelling, content disclosure or human editorial oversight.

Classification rationale

DMI is classified Captured Public/State-Managed (CaPu), a classification maintained from prior SMM cycles. It is wholly owned by the Government of Dubai and operates commercially with a mixed funding model rather than as a simple government department. However, its leadership is government-appointed, its strategic direction is set through the Dubai Media Council, and its editorial output aligns consistently with official positions. No independent statutory or oversight mechanism safeguards its editorial autonomy. The strength of these control indicators means a State-Controlled classification would be structurally defensible, but SMM retains CaPu, consistent with prior cycles, on the basis that DMI is a commercially operating public corporation rather than a ministry department.

June 2026