There may be major political problems in many parts of the Middle East, but stability in the GCC nations is boosting the amusement industry, as David Snook discovers

Before beginning this exercise, I looked at the conclusions to the 2011 market overview…“The real movers and shakers in the Middle East are looking further afield, to the big population centres of Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Saudi as the region moves out of recession and assuming that the drive on democracy remains largely peaceful, the industry’s ability to reinvent itself and reinvest in itself will re-emerge.”

With the benefit of hindsight, the most telling phrase was “…assuming that the drive on democracy remains largely peaceful…”

We now know. Libya fell apart; Syria is falling apart; Iran is threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz; unrest in Bahrain; Egypt in turmoil. So let’s forget about what might happen if stability kicks in. Let’s assume is isn’t, at least for some time.

In fact, the turmoil throughout the region has left the GCC countries somewhat stronger. The GCC is a kind of European Community of the region, full name The Co-operation Council for the Arab Countries of the Gulf.  That means the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain. While there has been some discomfort in the latter, it has not been a revolutionary trend like elsewhere in the Middle East.

Those GCC countries have steadily continued to emerge from the gloom of the global economic recession which hit the market in 2009 and, as far as the amusement industry is concerned, that sector is actually stronger as a result of the conflict going on around it.

“People from the countries in difficulty are coming to the GCC countries to get away from it all – and playing in the family entertainment centres,” said Prakash Vivekanand, head of local supplier ASI and keen observer and analyst of trends. “They are coming to places like the UAE and Qatar for their holidays because they know it’s safe.”

They are probably the main contributors to the UAE FECs showing a marked increase in FEC income during the past year. It is a point driven home by Silvio Liedtke, who runs the 19 Fun City locations on behalf of Landmark Leisure throughout the region. “Incomes have been markedly higher during the year, as much as 56 per cent in one of our locations.” In fairness that may be partially down to the effort which Liedtke and his staff at Fun City have put into rebranding their offering.

The overall impression, however, is one of a continued return to the good times, or at worst, several more steps towards it.

This report can be read in full in the April 2012 issue of InterGame magazine.