“SMF GROW UP” Initiative Opens a Path for Media Startups at the Future of Media Exhibition “FOMEX”
The “SMF GROW UP” initiative opens a clear path for media startups to obtain free space to participate in the Future of Media Exhibition “FOMEX,” within the activities of the Saudi Media Forum 2026. The idea is based on transforming support from general slogans into a practical path that begins with qualifying startup projects and raising their readiness, then testing them before investors, leading to granting companies that meet the initiative’s criteria free space at “FOMEX” for the first time since the exhibition’s launch.
The “SMF GROW UP” initiative was launched in July 2025 with the aim of empowering media enterprises and linking them to financing, training, and qualification opportunities, contributing to building a sustainable national media ecosystem. The initiative targets small and medium media startups, focusing on supporting them financially and cognitively to develop their projects and transform their ideas into growth-oriented and sustainable business models through specialized training and professional mentoring, and by connecting entrepreneurs with supporting entities and investors to contribute to building a prosperous media environment that keeps pace with economic and creative shifts in the Kingdom.
The initiative defines practical goals directly related to the needs of startups in their early stages, focusing on developing media skills through practical training and accelerating professional growth by providing a learning environment that helps participants improve their capabilities quickly and prepares them for the labor market. It also provides significant space for building business relationships between startup owners and major companies to open new horizons, alongside stimulating excellence by selecting the best trainees and providing them with opportunities to participate in workshops and programs in the upcoming forum, pushing participants to raise the quality of their projects and prepare to compete for larger opportunities.
The gateway to free participation in “FOMEX” only opens through precise selection criteria that sort projects according to specific tracks that serve the development of the media sector. These criteria include projects that serve talent through discovery and development, projects that serve content creation through producing new and innovative content, projects that serve the development of content production by improving the quality of production processes, as well as projects that serve content distribution and focus on improving its reach to the target audience.
The initiative proceeds through two interconnected stages. In the first stage, specialized training workshops are provided focusing on improving the performance of startup owners and developing their skills in various fields such as marketing, business management, and content production, while working on raising the quality of projects in general. In the same track, the initiative helps participants build a more complete investment profile by preparing clear feasibility studies and detailed business plans, increasing the chances of attracting investors and making the project capable of explaining its value clearly.
In the second stage, it moves to testing the ability to persuade and present in a space closer to competition, where project presentation sessions are organized in a “Shark Tank” style, in which project owners present their ideas before a panel of investors. These sessions provide a direct platform for presenting innovations and exchanging ideas, while offering an opportunity to obtain direct investment from interested investors, an element that increases the possibilities of growth and expansion for projects that can transform their idea into a convincing business model.
In the background of these stages, the initiative presents itself as an innovative program aimed at providing financial support to media startups that carry distinctive ideas, clarifying that this path serves the main goals of Saudi Vision 2030 through training, applied workshops, and providing the financial support and expertise necessary for the project’s success.
The value of the free space at “FOMEX” becomes clear when read as the end of a selective path, not just an organizational reward. The company that reaches the pavilion will have undergone training that raises its efficiency, built an investment profile that enhances its ability to speak the language of the market, and experienced a presentation before investors that puts its business model under the spotlight. At that point, free participation in “FOMEX” becomes an appropriate platform to present the project before a broad professional audience, expand the network of business relationships, and open opportunities for support, financing, and partnerships, in line with the logic of the initiative that links qualification to visibility and opportunities, and links criteria to outcomes within the Saudi Media Forum 2026.
United News Network – UNN Arabic
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