India’s entertainment industry projected to grow 9% to $73bn by 2027: PwC

India’s media and entertainment industry is expected to reach $73.6 billion by 2027 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.48%, according to consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) that published the ‘Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2023-2027’ report earlier this week.

The report based its findings on five-year projections of consumer and advertiser spending data across 13 segments and 53 countries and territories, following the Covid-slump.

Asia was identified as a growth hotspot where the combination of large, historically underserved rural populations, spread of mobile broadband, and strong demand for local and sports content presents major opportunities, added the report.

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Indonesia, India and China were identified as leading the growth matrix, with global giants such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ Hotstar and HBO Go competing with local streamers in the same space.

Additionally, deals continue to be a means of gaining scale. In February 2023, the Competition Commission of India conditionally approved the US$10 billion merger between Zee Entertainment and Sony Pictures Entertainment, opening the way to the creation of one of India’s largest conglomerates, spanning television channels, digital platforms and content production.

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In India, streaming leads the way with revenue surging 25% in 2022 to reach $1.8 billion. The market will continue to grow at 14% CAGR to produce revenue of $3.5 billion in 2027.

This will be driven by the competitive SVOD sector, which accounted for 78% of sector revenue in 2022, the report said, adding that while subscription service revenues will expand at 13% CAGR to reach $2.6 billion, ad-supported services (AVOD) will grow at a higher rate, albeit from a lower base.

Cinema, which touched a low of $402 million in 2021 during the pandemic, recovered to $1.1 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow 15% to reach $2.3 billion by 2027. Admissions recovered from 379 million in 2021 to 986 million in 2022 and are expected to reach 1.4 billion by 2027.

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In terms of segment size, television advertising remains the leader. it recovered from the pandemic downturn, with revenue expanding 19% in 2021 and 12% in 2022 to reach $4.7 billion. The report projects TV ad spend growth at 6.4% CAGR to reach $6.5 billion in 2027, making India the fourth-largest TV advertising market globally after the U.S., Japan and China.

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In the internet advertising sector, a 12% CAGR is projected to see revenue climb from $4.4 billion in 2022 to $7.9 billion by 2027. Within this, the mobile segment is projected to grow at 14% CAGR to boost revenue from $3.1 billion to $5.8 billion.

India’s consumer book market will increase at a 3.7% CAGR between 2022 and 2027, with revenue increasing from $1.1 billion to $1.3 billion, with most of the growth coming from the electronic books sector, where revenue will increase at 10% CAGR.

India’s music, radio and podcasts market reached revenues of $1.1 billion in 2022 and is forecast to reach $1.5 billion in 2027.

Looking to the future, the report states that streaming is growing most rapidly in emerging pockets and will be bolstered by a nationwide rollout of 5G capability estimated to be complete by the end of 2024.

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Smartphone ownership in India set to grow by 125 million across the forecast period to 888 million, which is 62.52% of India’s population, behind only China, creating a huge opportunity in India’s mobile-first market, added the report.

It cites the main challenge for the streaming market as the India’s low broadband penetration, at just 10.8% in 2022 and predicted to expand to only 14% in 2027. Investment in improved broadband infrastructure will unlock a vast market for streaming players, the report said.

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