Deezer has launched for markets in the Middle East and North Africa. The rollout comes on the back of an exclusive deal with the Rotana Group, which has the rights to a large library of Middle Eastern music. Deezer is offering its new users six months of its Premium tier for free. The service has tailored its platform for the new listeners, with an option to set Arabic as the language preference and curated playlists such as PopTop Arab, Rapstars Maghreb United and Shaabi Essentials.
“We are really excited to bring Arabic listeners a unique and unrivalled blend of the best exclusive Arabic music and the most popular international tracks in one place,” Deezer CEO Hans-Holger Albrecht said. “At Deezer we understand that people’s music tastes combine local and international tracks. We believe that it is important to be present locally, close to the artists we promote on our platform and to the local music fans who support them.”
He added that Deezer will be opening a regional headquarters in Dubai to help the streaming service to grow in the new market. “While overall streaming levels are still relatively low in the Middle East and North Africa, we are convinced that they will continue to grow rapidly and we look forward to being a key part in creating and capturing that growth,” he said.