Want to run an online media in Oman? Here are the conditions you must know

Muscat:  The Ministry of Information (MoI), in its newly issued executive regulation of the Media Law, stipulated that the online media company must be an Omani or owned by an Omani citizen, as per Article 81, which governs electronic media activities.

Among others, Article 82 states that any media entity wishing to establish an electronic media website or application for the activity for which it is licensed must complete the application form and attach a copy of the issued license.

Article 86: The licensed electronic newspaper, audio or video channel, electronic news agency, or electronic advertising agency must maintain an archive of its media content for a period of at least 180 days, and the relevant authorities at the Ministry may access this archive if the public interest so requires.

Article 87: The online media website or application is not permitted to publish any media content or advertising that violates the provisions of the law, this bylaw, or any regulations or instructions issued by the Ministry. It is also prohibited from quoting any texts or media materials without the prior consent of the copyright holder.

In all cases, the majority of the content published must be original content produced by those licensed to conduct electronic media activities.

Article 88: The owner of the website, the media outlet, website, or electronic account holder must request renewal of the license at least 30 days before the expiration date; failure to request renewal will result in the license being automatically canceled 30 days after the expiration date.

For Social Media Platforms (Article 89), the following requirements must be met by any person applying for a license to conduct media activities on social media platforms, such as an Omani citizen of the legal age. It should give details of the number of followers.

Article 90: The following requirements must be met for obtaining a license to conduct activities related to social media platforms, such as providing a comprehensive description of the social media account, including all details of its media content, attaching a copy of the applicant's personal identification card, address, qualifications, and experience, attach a criminal record certificate stating that the applicant has not been convicted of a felony or a crime involving dishonesty or breach of trust and 4. Any other information specified by the Ministry.

Rights and Obligations of Media Professionals

Article 91: No person may work as a media professional or correspondent for any media institution or online media platform without obtaining a license from the Ministry.

Article 92: Any person who practices any of the following journalism and media professions is considered a journalist or media professional:

Journalism professions are Editor-in-Chief, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor, Deputy Managing Editor, Journalist, Writer, Correspondent for a newspaper or news agency, Reporter, Photographer, Cartoonist, Editor of an online newspaper or news agency website, Responsible editor, or any other profession in the field of journalism approved by the Ministry.

Media professions incldue Broadcasting director, Assistant broadcasting director, Producer, Media correspondent for an audio or visual channel, Anchor or program presenter, Editor, Television cameraman, Television graphic designer, Radio or television director, Director of an online audio or visual channel, Online content creator, Media content aggregator, Photographer or videographer, Graphic designer, Social media influencer, or any other profession in the field of media approved by the mnistry.