A survey of Internet Financial Reporting in Qatar

Research reveals that there is little empirical evidence of the internet financial reporting (IFR) phenomenon in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. This paper attempts to fill some of the gap in our knowledge of IFR practices in Qatar. Specifically, the purpose of this paper is two-fold. First, it documents the extent and variety of practices of IFR by the 43 companies listed on the Doha Securities Market (DSM). Second, it seeks to examine the key factors that affect the engagement of IFR by the DSM-listed companies. The findings of the descriptive analysis indicate that 39 of the 43 listed companies operate websites, of which only 28 provide financial information on their websites. Of these 28 companies, 25 provide a complete set of financial statements (including footnotes and the auditor's report) for two-year periods or more. The results also show that the majority of the Qatari companies (25 out of 28) use the PDF format to disclose their financial information, and few companies choose to use the internet to provide additional financial highlights, in the form of HTML and MS PowerPoint. The empirical analysis also finds a significant relationship between the engagement of IFR and company size, profitability, and ownership structure. The overall conclusion is that there is a seemingly limited use of the internet for IFR purpose and that IFR is still at an embryonic stage in Qatar, with many opportunities and challenges for all stakeholder parties in corporate reporting. The applicability and implications of the underlying research findings should be of value to the accounting regulators and standard-setters in the region, particularly the Gulf Cooperation Council Accounting and Auditing Organization (GCCAAO). The overall findings justify, in the very least, a wider and more detailed study by GCCAAO of important issues such as the major audit implications of IFR and the state of regulation on IFR in the GCC region.