Basra TV — Iraqi News & Live Broadcasting
Digital newspaper and live-broadcasting app for an Iraqi news outlet — reading, news submission, YouTube live streams, and paid subscriptions — backed by a customized WordPress publishing site.
What I did
- Customized the client's WordPress site to match the provided design page-by-page, and streamlined the admin so editors and moderators could publish with minimal friction.
- Built the mobile app from scratch with React Native + Expo, implementing every screen individually against the client's design for both iOS and Android.
- Developed the news-submission and profile screens, and embedded live streams from YouTube and other sources directly in-app.
- Integrated RevenueCat for in-app subscriptions and Stripe for premium advertisers buying placements in the newspaper app.
- Implemented Arabic localization with right-to-left (RTL) layouts throughout.
Impact & results
- Shipped and published on the App Store as a full newspaper + live-streaming product.
- Single React Native codebase delivered to both iOS and Android.
The problem
Basra TV, an Iraqi news outlet, needed to go fully digital: a publishing website their editors could actually run, plus a mobile newspaper app where readers could follow coverage, watch live streams, and — for advertisers — pay to be featured. The client had designs; they needed someone to build the whole thing.
My approach
I delivered this end to end as the sole developer, starting on the web and then building the app.
- WordPress site — I customized their WordPress site page-by-page to match the provided design, and tuned the admin so editors and moderators could publish without fighting the CMS.
- Mobile app — I built the app from scratch in React Native + Expo, implementing each screen individually against the client's design and shipping to both iOS and Android.
- Content & streaming — I built the news-submission and profile screens and embedded live streams from YouTube and other sources directly in the app, so the newspaper doubles as a live-broadcast surface.
- Monetization — I integrated RevenueCat for in-app reader subscriptions and Stripe for premium advertisers buying placements in the app — two different payment models for two different audiences.
Challenges
- Two payment models, one app — reader subscriptions run through RevenueCat (store billing), while advertiser payments run through Stripe. I kept these cleanly separated so each audience gets the right flow.
- Localization & RTL — Arabic-first content meant right-to-left layouts across every screen, including the reading experience and live-stream views.
- Design fidelity — the client supplied designs for every screen; I built each one individually to match rather than reusing a generic template.
Outcome
Shipped and published on the App Store as a full newspaper + live-streaming product, backed by a customized WordPress publishing site, running on both iOS and Android.