Experience X is designed to meet the evolving demands of the current market while aligning with the nation’s agenda to nurture and empower its youth. By focusing on internships, du is providing invaluable opportunities for young talent to gain practical experience, understand the professional world, and spark their ambition for a future in various sectors.

The 12-week immersive initiative is designed to bridge the gap between academic learning and real-world application. The program offers interns structured learning plans tailored to their academic specializations and interests, while fostering both technical and soft skill development. Each intern is paired with a dedicated buddy for mentorship and support, ensuring a guided and enriching experience. Fully integrated into their teams, interns actively participate in meetings, contribute to live projects, and engage in team dynamics, gaining hands-on exposure to professional life and career opportunities.

Participants in the program will benefit from a curriculum that includes professional development, hands-on projects, and mentorship from industry leaders within du. This approach ensures the growth of the interns and the enrichment of the local talent pool, aligning with the UAE’s vision for a sustainable and diversified economy.

Pictured is Fatema Al Afeefi, Chief People & Impact Officer (Acting) at du.

The collaboration marks one of the first partnerships of its kind in the region between a gaming agency and a telecom provider – bringing competitive gaming directly into a retail environment and offering customers an immersive digital experience.

Launched on 10^th May and continuing over four consecutive weekends, the tournament series will feature four of the region’s most popular esports titles: Tekken 8, EAFC 25, Rocket League, and Fortnite. Held in-store, the activation will transform the retail space into a high-energy, interactive gaming hub for players and spectators alike.

According to du, this activation brings its 5G network capabilities to life, showcasing how ultra-fast connectivity and low latency can elevate real-time entertainment. By partnering with PLG, du is giving its customers the chance to experience the true potential of its network through something they love:  gaming, powered by du’s home wireless gaming enhanced router with 5G speeds and also its unstoppable network.

Open to all levels, the tournament will follow a leaderboard-style format, where the winner stays on. Matches will take place between 2pm and 10pm, with participants able to pre-register online or join by walking in on the day.

Each weekend, top performers will take home high-value prizes, including a Lenovo Legion Pro 7 gaming laptop for first place, a Samsung S25 Plus for second, and a Logitech G502 mouse and G773 headset for third — along with exclusive giveaways throughout the campaign.

As du’s official gaming agency partner, Power League Gaming will manage the full scope of the activation, from influencer engagement and social media to content production, and on-ground event delivery. The initiative reflects both brands’ shared vision for engaging digitally connected communities with authentic, high-impact experiences.

To register or learn more, please visit  https://shorturl.at/ZsIiZ. For more information on Power League Gaming, visit https://powerleaguegaming.com/

Winners of the competition will receive a cash prize of AED50,000 along with an opportunity to deliver an innovative and first-of-its-kind uniform collection for Du stores in the country. The competition aims to elevate Emirati designers and reaffirm the brand's longstanding roots in maximizing opportunities for homegrown talent.

Made to inspire optimism and transformation, the new uniforms will introduce a fresh approach to Du’s retail stores, crystallizing a new chapter in the brand’s journey to a digital-first telco.

Havas Middle East handled media amplification for the competition, collaborating with fashion and luxury online and offline titles in an unusual way for the telco brand, aiming to reach and engage young UAE-based designers.

Breaking the boundaries of traditional OOH, this technology enables the forward-thinking telecom provider to engage more efficiently with its audience by enlivening an otherwise intangible service. The campaign highlights that there are no limits to what can be achieved with innovative thinking and leading technology. 

Du along with its media agency, Havas Middle East launched a DOOH banner in the heart of Dubai, at the JBR Walk.

Commenting on the campaign, Ibrahim Al-Mayahi, Head of Commercial Brand & Marketing Communications at du telecom said, “There is no better timing than now to merge technology with a digital out-of-home experience. We are extremely excited to have been able to create and activate a personalized 3D interactive execution that is relevant to consumers and is delivered in the most agile way possible.” 

Head of Business Unit at Havas Media Middle East, Naveen Chacko Mathews further added, “We are incredibly excited to be given the opportunity by our client ‘du’ to innovate and push boundaries further in Outdoor advertising, to bring our campaign to life by leveraging a higher level of creativity enabled by the latest 3D technology.”  The ‘du’ Oasis 3D billboard comes to life daily in JBR until September 9. 

The line-up shared some interesting findings from their own endeavors.

Christian Bechara, head of MEA and Turkey at Socialbakers

• Marketers need to continuously innovate to keep their audiences engaged.
• Too much content, too much data but not enough resources.
• 51% of marketers create stories while only 49% create posts.
• Only 12% of brands use the carousel format on Instagram in the region.
• E-Commerce companies have the lowest exit rate on Instagram stories.
• 90% of brands just post copy-paste content.
• The secret to success on social media lies in the same principles of journalism. Addressing the five W’s and one H.

Rania ElMaghraby, senior director of Social Media at Du

• Culture, conversation, community, creation, change – the 5 C’s every marketer needs to keep in mind
• Not all platforms are the same.
• Each platform has a different identity.
• Managing different platforms for one brand requires a strong team.
• Listen to the audience.
• People prefer raw content which is simple and relevant to them.

Monica Raszyk, director of product marketing at Socialbakers

• Accessible data is actionable data – 1 in 5 in-house creatives don’t receive feedback on their content. Not even a notification when their content is published.
• 79% of marketers believe that content-led marketing campaigns will continue to grow over the next two years.
• On average, it takes 12 days to create a piece of content.

Mike Blake-Crawford, strategy director at Socialchain

• We’re moving from a campaign approach to an always-on approach.
• There’s so much content today – and as a result, we’re suffering from content overload, multi-screening on up to 5 different screens a day.
• There’s a disconnect between engagement and real results.
  

Soon after, beIN released the following statement:

“BeIN MEDIA GROUP announces that after lengthy negotiations it has not been able to reach to this day an agreement to continue its services over DU’s Network.”

(Read full article.)

du neither responded to beIN’s statement, which accused the telco of “wrongful facts” in its statement nor Communicate‘s request for comment.

Later the same night, beIN and du finally resolved their issues. du has been replying to users on social media with the following: “beIN channels are back and resumed the regular broadcasting. beIN Sports FIFA World Cup package will be available for subscription with du very soon. We’ll inform customers once the subscription starts.”

At this point, du hasn’t revealed any further details about the negotiation or the FIFA World Cup package.

A GCC-wide study by OMD shows that 75 percent consider themselves extreme football fanatics and 65 percent of respondents claimed they would be watching it in a home – either their own or a friend’s.

But, how can these 65 percent watch it?

 The official broadcaster is Qatari-based beIN.

But, du has blocked the network for its customers.

Last year, too, following tensions between Qatar and other GCC countries, its channels were unavailable in Gulf countries.

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Replying to a user on Twitter, du said earlier today, “We are temporarily unable to show beIN sport channels and packages and we are working with our partner to restore broadcasting beIN Sports channels.”

A couple of hours later, beIN released a statement, saying, “BeIN MEDIA GROUP announces that after lengthy negotiations it has not been able to reach to this day an agreement to continue its services over DU’s Network. In light of this, the service has ceased on the Network on June 2^nd, 2018 as the contract between the parties had expired on May 31^st 2018. The GROUP has further acted in good faith by granting the Network an extension of 24 hours to conclude the renewal process and sustain the service to no avail. While beIN MEDIA Group denounces the wrongful facts contained in DU’s statement, our viewers can continue to enjoy our services over satellite, and live streaming (beIN CONNECT).”

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du has not yet responded to beIN’s statement and accusations of the “wrongful facts in du’s statement”.

At the time of writing this, it had not responded to Communicate’s request for comment.

beIN CONNECT currently offers a FIFA World Cup package for $150 valid until July 16, 2018. The subscription includes access to beIN SPORTS MAX HD1, beIN SPORTS MAX HD2, beIN SPORTS MAX HD3, beIN SPORTS MAX HD4.

Etisalat, on the other hand, has worked out a deal with beIN and is offering a separate FIFA World Cup package for AED555 not including VAT.

UPDATE:

du and beIN come to an agreement

The media agency review concluded at the end of last year with Omnicom’s Hearts & Science winning the pitch. The account was previously held by Publicis Media’s Starcom, which won the account in 2014.

Now, industry sources report, the account is no longer with Leo Burnett – du’s creative agency since the brand’s launch. It has instead been given to TBWA/RAAD.

Both du and TBWA/RAAD declined to comment.

UPDATE:

du has issued a statement confirming the win. Abdulwahed Juma, executive vice-president of Brand & Corporate Communications at du, said in the statement, “We are in the midst of an organizational transformation that has challenged us to try new business methods and refresh our strategic approach as a brand. We were thoroughly impressed by the creativity and high calibre of work from all invited agencies. Ultimately, we found that the creative strengths and data-driven approach of TBWARAAD are best suited for our communications needs and will help us meet the challenges of our new innovation-led environment.” “We would like to extend our warmest gratitude to Leo Burnett, whose creative team has been integral in our success during our unprecedented 13-year partnership and has helped us grow into the $2 billion company we are today,” he added.

“For the past few years, we have worked to transform ourselves into the agency of the future, and are delighted by du’s endorsement of our innovative approach,” said Reda Raad, CEO of TBWARAAD. “We believe that du is the leading force behind the digital revolution, and we look forward to working together. We aim to reflect the innovation and creativity of the brand during this decisive transitional time in the telecoms industry.”

The above numbers – of which some are admittedly cause of concern – are the results of a du survey, Social Media Usage and the Dangers of Oversharing, conducted by Ipsos across 500 respondents in the UAE. They are also the inspiration behing du’s #PostWisely campaign – a public service movement consisting of videos and other social media content to drive awareness of the risks and dangers of oversharing on social media.

The campaign was launched on November 9, 2016 at an event in Dubai where the results of the survey were presented followed by an interactive session on the dangers of sharing information online between attendees including Alex Malouf, MEPRA vice-chair & Chair, Professional Development & Knowledge Sharing Committee; Sultaneh Naeem, leadership personal growth expert and mind trainer at TWIG and Zabeen Ahmed, founder and chief innovation officer at Sevia.

“Our aim today is to sensitize audiences about sharing the information that could be detrimental, not only to their lives, but also to their families and wellbeing,” said Hala Badri, executive vice-president of brand and communications, du. “As a responsible business, we saw an opportunity to address this issue head on, as it has been growing in leaps and bounds, and will continue to manifest itself – unless we do something about it.”

“Today we are launching our first Public Service Advertisement Campaign #PostWisely, because we at du believe that it is possible to create a culture of responsible posting and reduce the number of cybercrime incidents through education, collaboration and sharing,” she added.

#PostWisely is an initiative aimed at protecting UAE residents from the threat of cybercrime.

Dr. Aisha Bin Bishr, assistant director of The Executive office of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, member of the Executive Committee of Smart Dubai Initiative, says in a press statement, “We are keen in the Smart Dubai Initiative to establish a larger partnership base within the private sector; our partnership with du is one of the most important as it provides the necessary technological infrastructure for the Smart City. The WiFi UAE announcement is a step forward in Dubai’s transformation into the smartest city in the world. In the coming period, we will work towards implementing the many steps that lead to achieving the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.”

Announcing the launch, Osman Sultan,  CEO, du, says, “Remaining connected in today’s fast-paced digitized world is a basic human right that will increasingly define quality of service in a smart society. The aim of WiFi UAE is to provide affordable, secure and seamless connectivity for people in a Smart City so that they have easy access to all government services. Now, we are focused on building on these services and expanding the WiFi coverage through new and ongoing strategic partnerships. Our ultimate aim is the enablement of a new and better lifestyle for the residents through providing them a world of convenience, empowerment and innovative services.”

WiFi UAE gives users two options to choose from, WiFi and Premium WiFi, which can be accessed from any WiFi-enabled device with a UAE mobile number. This includes Smartphones, laptops, tablets, gaming devices and more.

With the WiFi option, users can access the Internet, browse emails and use their social applications free of charge, at restricted speeds.

With Premium WiFi, a launch promotion includes 6 hours of high speed Internet that can be used over 3 days for AED 20. Or, for AED 50, users can purchase 20 hours of high speed Internet access that can be used over a 7 day period. If hours are consumed within a shorter time frame, users can purchase more. Paying for the service is quick and easy. Users can recharge with a du WOW recharge card or use their UAE or GCC-issued credit card to buy credit. A pin number will be required to ensure safety and security.

In addition, both options will enable customers to access government websites and applications at unrestricted speed.

du, in its role as official Smart City WiFi provider, has partnered with several government and public entities to deliver WiFi UAE connectivity and customer convenience in a number of high footfall areas including Dubai Metro and Tram, DIFC, Knowledge Village, Dubai Media City, Emaar Boulevard, Global Village, and du shops. The service will expand shortly to parks, and beaches under its agreement with Dubai Municipality.

More details can be accessed on: www.WiFiUAE.ae