[3] When it debuted, Abu Dhabi TV was the 20th most-watched Arab satellite channel, but soon reached 7th or 8th within a few months (in particular, based on the strength of its Million's Poet show).

[9] CNN, HarperCollins, Random House, the BBC, The Financial Times and the Thomson Reuters Foundation agreed to establish operations on the site, with several of the companies offering training in journalism and filmmaking for Arab students.

[14][15] Later in September, Imagenation signed a multibillion-dollar agreement to produce films, television shows, documentaries, and other media with Warner Bros.[10][16][17] The deal set aside $500 million for film production and $500 million for video game production, and included agreements for both companies to develop real estate, theme parks, and new media projects as well.

[19] Later the same month, the company announced a $250 million production pact with U.S.-based Participant Media, which produces socially relevant films and television specials.

[14][21] But the billion-dollar Warner Bros. deal produced only one film (Robert Rodriguez's Shorts) and a number of video game titles in its first 18 months.

[14][18][19] Problems with the deal included its lack of details and the 2008-2009 credit crunch,[18] and the possibility that Warner Bros. was not offering Abu Dhabi Media Company first look at its prime motion picture vehicles.

In January 2009, Imagenation announced that director Peter Weir would direct The Way Back, a drama starring Colin Farrell and Ed Harris based on the true story of a group of soldiers in World War II who escape from a Siberian gulag in 1942.

[14][22] Beginning in 2007, the company began hosting "Circle", an annual conference dedicated to the financing and production of motion pictures, and to the training of producers, directors, editors, and other film technical personnel and acting talent.