Entertainment and media industry set for pandemic bounceback

The global entertainment and media industry has rebounded strongly from a pandemic slump, claims a new report.

According to PWC, the industry is set to grow by 6.5% in 2021 and 6.7% in 2022. The report notes that revenues in the sector are set to outpace the economy as a whole, fuelled by strong demand for digital content and advertising.

This growth is set to follow a 2020 in which in-person entertainment suffered, including a 71% dip in cinema box office revenues. Overall, The 3.8% decline in global E&M revenue, from US$2.1 trillion in 2019 to US$2.0 trillion in 2020, was the biggest year-on-year drop in more than 22 years. 

Between 2021-25, the research firm predicts global E&M revenue to grow at a CAGR of 5% to a total of US$2.6 trillion. 

Video streaming, which saw an explosion of growth in 2020, is set to continue its positive momentum. The report predicts SVOD growth at a CAGR of 10.6% to 2025 to US$81.3 billion.

Werner Ballhaus, Global Entertainment & Media Industry Leader Partner, PwC Germany, said: “The pandemic slowed the entertainment and media industry last year, but it also accelerated and amplified power shifts that were already transforming the industry. Whether it’s box office revenues shifting to streaming platforms, content moving to mobile devices, or the increasingly complex relationships among content creators, producers and distributors, the dynamics and power within the industry continue to shift. Our Outlook shows that the hunger for content, continued advances in technology and new business models and ways of creating value will drive the industry’s growth for the next five years and beyond.”

But while the report is bullish on the future of streaming, it notes that big tech platforms are likely to experience a pushback in the coming years as governments propose new media regulations. The UK, for example, is looking to bring streaming services under the purview of Ofcom.

Balhaus added: “Even in the areas that offer the most compelling topline growth – like video streaming – the nature of competition is likely to change dramatically over the coming years. And all the while, the social, political, and regulatory context in which all companies operate continues to evolve in unpredictable ways. All of which means that sitting still, relying on the strategies that created value and locked up market share in the past, will not be the most effective posture going forward.”