Shams News

Shams Concludes Bridge Summit 2025 with Pioneering Achievements

Sharjah – 10 December 2025: Sharjah Media City “Shams” concluded its distinguished participation in the Bridge Summit 2025, the world’s largest event for the media, content, and entertainment sectors, held from 8 to 10 December at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC). The summit witnessed an exceptional global presence with more than 60,000 specialists from 132 countries and over 430 speakers representing leading experts and content creators. Shams’ participation underscored its continued commitment to strengthening its international presence and showcasing its integrated vision for advancing modern media industries in line with the rapid transformations shaping the digital content landscape.

Throughout its participation within an exhibitor platform that brought together more than 300 leading institutions in media, artificial intelligence, creative technologies, gaming, and music, Shams presented a selection of its key current and upcoming projects. Foremost among them was the “Shams Studios” project, approved by His Highness Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah. The project represents the largest unified government-owned media complex in the UAE and the region—reinforcing Sharjah’s position as a regional hub for audiovisual content creation and a premier destination for media production.

The summit also served as an ideal platform for the official announcement of “Madar Media LLC”, in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah and Chairman of Sharjah Media Council. As the new commercial and creative arm of Shams, Madar Media reflects an integrated vision aimed at enhancing the financial sustainability of the media sector in Sharjah and supporting growth pathways grounded in excellence and innovation across the content industry.

Madar Media operates under a flexible institutional model built on a comprehensive ecosystem of services and infrastructure developed by Shams in recent years. This includes advanced visual production studios, state-of-the-art podcast recording rooms, fully equipped digital broadcasting spaces, and the dedicated “Influencer Studio,” which serves as a practical training tool that empowers emerging content creators. Madar’s business units further encompass training and development, social media and influencer management, podcast production, scriptwriting for films and series, cinematic production services and filming locations, in addition to the “Madar AI” platform, which harnesses artificial intelligence technologies to design and produce high-quality visual and audio content—positioning it as a core driver of future content innovation. The company aims to build strong local and international partnerships that reinforce its role as an innovative media platform emerging from Sharjah to the world.

As part of its efforts to build a fully integrated media ecosystem, Shams also signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding with Sharjah Islamic Bank during the summit to support the Shams Studios project and provide innovative financing solutions for filmmakers and companies operating within the creative sector. The signing ceremony was attended by His Highness Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, while the agreement was signed by Mohammed Abdullah, CEO of Sharjah Islamic Bank, and Rashid Abdullah Al Obad, Director General of Sharjah Media City. The partnership aims to enhance the capacity of production companies to carry out their projects within Sharjah through flexible financing programs tailored specifically to the media industry.

In parallel with these initiatives, the Shams booth experienced exceptional footfall throughout Bridge Summit 2025, driven in part by a special business setup offer that enabled the issuance of commercial licenses in just 60 minutes. This initiative—combined with the summit’s global platform for connecting entrepreneurs, innovators, and creative companies—resulted in the registration of more than 50 new businesses within the Shams ecosystem, including several international companies that selected Sharjah Media City as their operational base due to its supportive environment and advanced services. This achievement reflects growing confidence in Shams as a leading destination for investment in the creative and digital sectors, and highlights its role in empowering talent and enabling companies to expand into broader markets.

Rashid Abdullah Al Obad emphasized that Shams’ participation in the Bridge Summit aligns with a comprehensive vision for advancing the media industry in Sharjah. He said:

“Through our presence at this global platform, we aim to highlight the integrated ecosystem developed by Shams to empower talent and startups, and to showcase our pioneering projects that keep pace with the rapid shifts in content creation. The launch of Madar Media marks a pivotal step in establishing a competitive commercial and creative entity at both regional and global levels. Furthermore, our partnership with Sharjah Islamic Bank opens new opportunities for the growth of the creative sector and supports the Shams Studios project as one of the most significant media initiatives in the region.”

Al Obad added that Shams continues to advance its media and technological infrastructure, reinforcing Sharjah’s position as a leading destination for content creators and production companies. He noted that participation in the Bridge Summit strengthened collaboration networks and opened new channels of engagement with international entities—positively contributing to the growth of the creative economy in the UAE.

Shams concluded its participation by reaffirming its commitment to developing an innovative media environment that nurtures talent and strengthens Sharjah’s presence on the global media map, while continuing to launch initiatives and projects that empower the next generation of creators and support the long-term sustainability of the media industry in the UAE and the wider region.