Emirates evening paper ceases publication

The title, which is popular among Dubai's large ex-pat community from the Indian sub-continent, has not been published since Sunday.

It is understood that the decision to stop publication was made on commercial grounds, although there is speculation that the title has experienced a licensing issue with local authorities.

No one from the Evening Post's publisher, Press Centre and Art Productions, was available for an official comment about why the title has been pulled.

A source with close links to the newspaper said: "It was a commercial decision -- I guess it wasn't working out for them."

An editorial insider, however, said he was confident the newspaper could make a comeback within a matter of weeks.

He said: "We had to close because of a government issue. It's been suspended. In three weeks' time we expect to be up and running."

Launched three years ago as a broadsheet, the Emirates Evening Post switched to a tabloid format in December 2005.

Despite a further redesign last year, it has failed to attract big-name advertisers.

The long-term vision of the paper was to position itself as a commuter paper for the opening of the UAE's Metro public transport network, which is scheduled for 2009.

Broadsheet giants Gulf News and Khaleej Times dominate the UAE's English-language newspaper market.

Other titles include the Metro-style freesheet 7Days and the government-owned Emirates Today.

Press Centre and Art Productions also publishes Malayalam title Arabia and Urdu Express in the UAE.

The move comes just weeks after another UAE newspaper, the daily Sport100, ceased publication.

The title, compiled by the UK's Press Association and distributed locally by Pure Media, closed last month.

This article was first published on brandrepublic.com