This is an automatically generated PDF version of the online resource lebanon.mom-gmr.org/en/ retrieved on 2024/12/03 at 10:42
Global Media Registry (GMR) & Samir Kassir Foundation - all rights reserved, published under Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Samir Kassir Foundation
Global Media Registry

Future TV

Future TV was founded by former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and received its broadcast license on March 21, 1997. The TV station used to own Zein TV, a channel launched in 2001 and targeting a young adult audience. It aired a wide variety of entertainment programs for youth aged 15-35, addressing Internet, fashion and music, in addition to newscast. Zein TV was shut down on February 14, 2005, upon Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination. On December 9, 2007, Future TV launched the Future News channel, using the premises of Zein TV. Four years later, Future News was shut down and merged with the main Future TV channel due to the station's financial crisis.

On May 7, 2008, conflict between Hezbollah and the Amal Movement supporters on the one hand, and Future Movement supporters on the other hand, erupted in Beirut and other Mount Lebanon areas. It is considered the most dangerous and violent conflict since the end of the Lebanese civil war. Pro-Hezbollah protesters stormed the Future TV headquarters in Beirut and the channel was forced to stop broadcast for several days.

Future TV’s political position is that of the Future movement led by former Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

In September 2019, Saad Hariri announced the suspension of work at Future TV, citing financial reasons. In 2021, Future TV returned to the media landscape but only to broadcast recurrent old shows, increasingly limiting their content to “basic essentials” over time.

Key facts

Audience Share

MissingData

Ownership Type

Private - Lebanese Joint Stock Company

Geographic Coverage

National

Content Type

Free content

Data Publicly Available

ownership data is easily available from other sources, e. g. public registries etc.

2 ♥

Media Companies / Groups

Future Television SAL

Ownership

Ownership Structure

Future Television SAL has more than 70 shareholders. The Hariri family controls directly 59.14% of the shares, divided among former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, his brothers Ayman, Bahaa, Fahd, his aunt then MP Bahia Hariri, his stepmother Nazik Hariri, and his uncle Shafik Hariri. Close allies of the Hariri family, i.e. Saad Hariri's advisor Hani Hammoud own 10%, as well as the Shammaa family, involved in several other ventures with the Hariri family, which owns 10%. Other minor shareholders include business partners such as Bechara Nammour, Hariri advisors former MP Salim Diab and Nadim Munla, a number of bankers inlcuding Francois Bassil and the late former minister Farid Raphael, as well as shareholders linked to a number of Lebanese politicians, including former MP Anwar Al-Khalil, former Deputy Prime Minister Samir Mokbel, former Future Movement MP and Interior Minister Nohad Machnouk, and former Minister Youssef Takla.

Voting Rights

Missing Data

Individual Owner

Group / Individual Owner

Others

Other minor shareholders include business partners such as Bechara Nammour (0.02%), Hariri advisors Salim Diab (0.04%), Nadim Munla (0.04%), a number of bankers including Samir Hammoud (5.17%), Francois Bassil (0.08%) and Farid Raphael (1%), as well as shareholders linked to a number of Lebanese politicians, including former MP Anwar Al-Khalil (0.08%), former Deputy Prime Minister Samir Mokbel (0.4%), and former Minister Youssef Takla.

20.9%
Media Companies / Groups
Facts

General Information

Founding Year

1997

Affiliated Interests Founder

Rafik Hariri

Prime Minister (1992-2008; 2000-2004), assassinated on 14 February 2005

Affiliated Interests Ceo

Hani Hammoud

Media advisor to Hariri family

Affiliated Interests Editor-In-Chief

N/A

Affiliated Interests other important people

Ramzi Jbeily

General Manager of the TV station and an official signatory.

Financial Information

Revenue (in Mill. $)

Missing Data

Operating Profit (in Mill. $)

Missing Data

Advertising (in % of total funding)

Missing Data

Market Share

Missing Data

Further Information

Headlines

Chidiac, M. (2014). La television mise à nu. L'Orient des Livres. (Available in French only).

Meta Data

2024 audience share for all outlets is based on data provided by ELKA. Cumulative amounts are used to assess the audience share indicator. 2024 and 2021 data on shareholder fractions, company information, revenue, and management are acquired by the collaborative investigative efforts of SEEDS for Legal Initiatives and the Samir Kassir Foundation. Audience share data is unavailable for online outlets.

  • Project by
    Samir Kassir Foundation
  •  
    Global Media Registry
  • Funded by
    BMZ
  •  
    Logo of Kingdom of Netherlands