10 Riyadh travel, tourism offices closed over rules breaches
The initiative aims to ensure compliance with regulatory standards and improve service quality across the Kingdom
Updated 12 July 2025
Arab News
RIYADH: Inspection teams from the Ministry of Tourism visited travel and tourism offices in Riyadh as part of the “Our Guests Are a Priority” campaign.
The initiative aims to ensure compliance with regulatory standards and improve service quality across the Kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Saturday.
In Riyadh, the inspections led to the closure of 10 offices for violations. The main offenses included operating without a license, organizing unauthorized Umrah and Hajj trips, transporting pilgrims in unlicensed vehicles, and housing worshippers in unregulated facilities in Makkah and Madinah.
The campaign is part of the ministry’s efforts to protect tourists’ rights and regulate tourism service providers. It targets unlicensed offices or those operating beyond their approved activities.
The ministry confirmed it will impose regulatory penalties on violators, including fines of up to SR50,000 ($13,300). For repeat offenses, fines can reach up to SR1 million.
Additional sanctions may include suspension or permanent closure of the office, depending on the severity of the violations. The ministry urged all licensed providers to comply with the terms of their licenses.
It also advised tourists to deal only with licensed and regulated providers to protect their rights and ensure a safe, reliable experience, the SPA reported.
Complaints about tourism and hospitality services can be reported to the Unified Tourism Call Center at 930.
PIF-owned Savvy Games expands Saudi Arabia’s gaming footprint
The centerpiece was the Esports World Cup, held in Riyadh, which brought together 2,000 players from 200 clubs competing for a $70 million prize pool across 24 titles
Updated 26 August 2025
Lama Alhamawi
RIYADH: Savvy Games Group has underlined its commitment to Saudi Arabia’s gaming and esports ecosystem, noting strong growth in its 2025 annual report.
The Riyadh-based company, fully owned by the Public Investment Fund, said it had made major strides across three pillars — game development and publishing, esports, and ecosystem building in the Kingdom.
The Esports World Cup in Riyadh brought together 2,000 players from 200 clubs com- peting for a $70 million prize pool across 24 titles. (SPA)
The centerpiece was the Esports World Cup, held in Riyadh, which brought together 2,000 players from 200 clubs competing for a $70 million prize pool across 24 titles.
Under its “ecosystem building” pillar the company launched the Savvy Academy, which focuses on games and esports education, as well as seven new partnerships to build the domestic sector.
FASTFACT
Savvy Academy is introducing training programs to support the domestic games and esports ecosystem.
Through partnerships with Princess Nourah University and King Abdulaziz University, and international companies including AWS, Unity and Feed Me Light, the academy is introducing training programs to support the domestic games and esports ecosystem.
Brian Ward, Savvy Games Group CEO
“We are working with the Ministry of Education on programs to roll out across 32,000 primary and secondary schools in the Kingdom, to give young people (the chance) to work with game development tools,” Brian Ward, group CEO of Savvy Games Group, told Arab News.
Their “Next-Gen” program gives Saudi students hands-on experience in game development.
The Esports World Cup in Riyadh brought together 2,000 players from 200 clubs com- peting for a $70 million prize pool across 24 titles. (SPA)
“It was so successful in terms of their enthusiasm, their immediate adoption to the technologies in terms of game design, concepting, taking the concept to ideation,” Ward said. “We think kids would love this. (They) were so amazing.”
While strengthening the Kingdom’s domestic sector, Savvy also expanded its global publishing operations. The company acquired Scopely in 2023 for $4.9 billion, and since then the publisher has tripled in size.
We are working with the Ministry of Education on programs to roll out across 32,000 primary and secondary schools in the Kingdom, to give young people (the chance) to work with game development tools.
Brian Ward, Savvy Games Group CEO
“Scopely is now the second largest mobile games publisher in the world,” said Ward.
In March this year, Scopely signed a $3.5 billion deal to acquire the video game division of Niantic Labs, including Pokemon Go.
Scopely’s “Monopoly Go” became the fastest game to reach $5 billion in revenue, and the company was named one of TIME’S 100 Most Influential Companies for a second consecutive year.
Walter Driver, Co-founder and co-CEO of Scopely. (Supplied)
At a media roundtable in Riyadh on Monday, Scopely co-founder and co-CEO Walter Driver said: “We saw over 5 billion hours of play time last year and perhaps the most unique aspect of this experience was 50 percent of our players were active on any given day playing seven days a week.
“Since we have started Scopely, we have had over 1 billion people download our products,” he added.
With SR142 billion ($38 billion) allocated by PIF to accelerate gaming sector growth, Savvy said it would continue investing globally while anchoring development in Saudi Arabia.
Its strategy is aligned with the National Gaming and Esports Strategy to position the Kingdom as a global leader in the industry by 2030.
Participants addressed future challenges and opportunities, focusing on the commission’s role in promoting innovation and sustainability in the library sector
Updated 26 August 2025
Arab News
RIYADH: A remote session discussing the use of artificial intelligence in libraries has been hosted by the Libraries Commission, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday.
The event explored the latest technologies and smart applications that can enhance library services, including smart search engines, personalized recommendations and assistive robots.
The discussion highlighted key global examples, such as Helsinki Central Library Oodi in Finland and the British Library, along with local AI applications.
Participants also addressed future challenges and opportunities, focusing on the commission’s role in promoting innovation and sustainability in the library sector.
The session was part of the commission’s efforts to align with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 reform plan, which aims to build an advanced library sector and make knowledge accessible to all through innovative digital solutions.
Participants are learning about advanced systems for climate control, smart irrigation, crop monitoring, and energy-saving solutions
Updated 26 August 2025
Arab News
Riyadh: The National Research and Development Center for Sustainable Agriculture, known as Estidamah, and NEOM food company Topian have been running their second greenhouse management training program in Riyadh.
The program, which began on Aug. 24 and ends on Thursday, aims to promote sustainable agricultural practices by providing comprehensive training in the management and operation of climate-controlled greenhouses.
Participants are learning about advanced systems for climate control, smart irrigation, crop monitoring, and energy-saving solutions, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday.
The curriculum also addresses key challenges such as water scarcity, soil health, and biodiversity conservation, the SPA added.
This initiative is a part of Estidamah’s knowledge-transfer program, which seeks to improve farming efficiency and enhance food security. This is in line with the objectives of the country’s National Agriculture Strategy.
