Byte Size Weekly #4 (September 19, 2017)
Snapchat Removes Qatari Broadcasting Channel in Saudi Arabia
Whats Going On
Al Jazeera, a Qatari state-funded broadcaster owned by the Al Jazeera Media Network, is being removed by Snapchat on the Saudi Arabian version of the app. Snap released a statement that it is complying with local law, however Al Jazeera calls move an ‘attempt to silence freedom of expression’.
Saudi Arabia contacted Snap on September 13th with the request for a ban of Al Jazeera in the app, claiming that Al Jazeera’s presence in Snapchat’s Discover news service violated local laws related to published material and anti-cyber crime. Al Jazeera articles remain open to Snapchat users in 14 other countries in the Middle East.
Implications for Snap
Snapchat has a strong presence in the Middle East where, alongside Instagram, it has grown rapidly in the past couple of years. Snapchat does not want to cede a chance for growth in the an area with a fast-growing internet population as well as its oil-rich investors. Snap earlier this year opened an office in Dubai along with other tech companies, including Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Many firms have also chosen the city as a launch pad for expanding their regional businesses.
Recently, Snap has become more transparent about bout law-enforcement requests for its data. Snap released that in 2017, there were 201 requests for data made by international authorities, yet none prior to this incident came from Saudi Arabia .
Bigger Picture
Snap’s decision to remove the content could create further tensions between the Qatari broadcaster and the four neighbouring countries that have imposed an economic blockade on Qatar during the summer. Qatari businesses are facing pressure after Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates broke diplomatic and economic ties in June. Qatar is accused of sheltering and supporting Islamist groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas, each of these claims has been denied by Qatar.
Snap is trying to expand its popularity as a destination for news articles and videos, but is encountering a new challenge in the form of potential government censorship of that news. Various large tech companies have faced the issue of how to deal with oppressive regimes who seek to censor or limit the free speech and free access to information that their services usually provide. Google pulled its web-search engine out of mainland China in 2010 after a confrontation with state officials who sought to censor its search results. Facebook has also dealt with censorship issues in China. Going forward, tech companies will need to balance the desire for censorship and the demand for freedom of speech.
