First Arabtec was asking for liquidation which will cause a major unemployment flood in the UAE and now at the start of 2021 Darkmatter and Digital14 will going to lay off most of her employees. Since the takeover by Edge group, Darkmatter was not really active on the security market and their name change to Digital14 does not make any difference in their employment strategy. I am still seeing new vacancies from Darkmatter/Digital14 appearing on LinkedIn but if you think you would receive a job then this is likely not the case. Etihad likely to lay off 1,000 employees. Companies have to advertise vacancies otherwise would lose
The United Arab Emirates has its own rules and regulations specific to advertisements. Advertisements are not regulated by a single regulation; they are regulated by numerous laws such as the Printing and Publication law, National Media council regulations and Cybercrime law and laws governing consumer protection and commercial activities particularly in relation to anti-competitive practices and illegal monopolies.
Additionally, in this region, advertisements should be sensitive to the cultural expectations and tolerances of the target audience in addition to the legal framework governing the dissemination of advertising content. Producers and advertisers will always focus on what they want to convey to the people throughout the content of the advert – they will want to deliver their idea in a creative way to attract attention. It is important to remember that, whilst advertisers have freedom to be creative, there are limits imposed by these laws and local culture.
All companies that develop or deliver advertising to the public need to be aware of these laws. To assist them in this, we have developed a set of Questions and Answers that all advertisers should ask themselves before creating an advertisement. These provide a simple pathway to highlight some of key issues that can arise.
Sanctions for violating the advertisement laws and regulations
Companies spend so much time and expense on their advertisement to support the promotion of their brand. Financial penalties and potentially adverse PR will certainly undermine these efforts and thus advertisers should avoid unconsciously violating regulations. Failure to do so may mean spending money and creative effort on an advertisement which could be banned from media outlets.
As an example of the range of sanctions that are available in the case of a violation of the regulations, the National Media Council has the right to require any of the following actions from the advertiser in question:
- Warning
- Suspension of the advertisement and apology
- The removal of the damage resulted from the violation
- Apply to close down the establishment or shop
- Suspension of the licenses of the media outlet for the period deemed appropriate by the Council; and/or cancellation of the license granted to the media outlet.
In conclusion, all content that is available to the general public must be rigorously vetted in order to ensure that it is compliant with the law, the regulations and as the principles and standards of within the wider community. Anything less will be potentially crippling to the advertiser and could lead to damage to the brand’s reputation in the marketplace.
Some links with more information in relation to the UAE Darkmatter/Digital14 and signed agreements.
Arabtec cuts thousands of jobs ahead of liquidation – sources
Careem lays off over 150 employees
UAE-based intelligence firm said recruiting IDF veterans from elite cyber unit
UAE cyber firm DarkMatter slowly steps out of the shadows
Mysterious UAE Cyber Firm Luring ex-Israeli Intel Officers With Astronomical Salaries
