India’s Media Industry To Grow Past Rs 2.35 Lakh Crore By 2021: Report
The media and entertainment industry will keep growing at 11.6 percent annually, says FICCI-EY report.
The media and entertainment industry is expected to cross the Rs 2.35-lakh-crore mark by 2021, clipping at 11.6 percent annually, said a report.
The industry stood at Rs 1.67 lakh crore in 2018, growing 13.4 percent over 2017, according to a report co-authored by Ficci and EY. “While television will remain the largest segment, growth is expected to come from digital that will overtake filmed entertainment in 2019 and the print by 2021,” the report, released at the annual industry summit Ficci Frames, said.
Of the 570 million internet users, around 2.5 million use only digital media and eschew the traditional media, according to the report which forecasts that this digital-only customer base is slated to double to 5 million by 2021.
Digital consumption will grow,and monetisation avenues will see innovation to meet customer demands and one big growth driver will be over-the-top players on the back of telecom companies bundling their offerings with data. Already advertising growth has outpaced subscription growth and is expected to comprise 52 percent of the total pie by 2021.FICCI-EY Report
The television industry grew 12 percent in 2018 to Rs 74,000 crore. Advertising grew 14 percent to Rs 30,500 crore and subscription grew 11 percent to Rs 43,500 crore. Television viewing households rose to 197 million, a 7.5 percent rise over 2016.
Television can reach Rs 95,500 crore by 2021, with advertising growing at 10 percent and subscription at 8 percent, it said.
Print is the second largest medium growing a tepid 0.7 percent, has reached Rs 30,550 crore in 2018. Of this, ad revenue was Rs 21,700 crore and subscription revenue was Rs 8,830 crore, up a marginal 1.2 percent.
Significantly, newspaper advertising fell 1 percent, and magazine advertising fell 10 percent in the year.
“The fall in advertising is due to both lower volumes as well as pressure on effective rates,” the report said. “Hindi dailies continued to lead with 37 percent of total ad volume, followed by English at 25 percent. Rising newsprint prices and the rupee fall put pressure on their margins.”
Regional advertising outpaced national growth on the back of national brands spending more to develop non-metro markets where goods and services tax has created a level playing field for both, the report said.
It said broadcasters have started selling ads combined across all platforms to enable better monetisation of marquee properties and increased utilisation of digital inventory.
The impact of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s tariff order can have implications on total viewership, free television uptake, channel rates and ad revenue. However, 2019 promises further growth due to the elections and the cricket world cup, EY said.
The year also saw a 26 percent growth in digital news consumers over 2017 when 222 million people consumed news online. Page views grew 59 percent over 2017 and the average time spent almost doubled to 8 minutes a day.
Digital media clipped past 42 percent to reach Rs 16,900 crore in 2018. Of this, ad revenue stood at Rs 15,400 crore, grew 34 percent and subscription stood at Rs 1,400 crore, registering a growth of 262 percent. This makes the digital ad pie around 21 percent of the total ad market.
Video subscription revenue almost grew three times to reach Rs 1.340 crore, thanks to rising smartphones penetration on the back of almost free data, regional content, and live streaming of major cricket properties.
Main reason for the growth in digital subscription that touched Rs 1,400 crore is telecom companies bundling content with their data plans.
The report sees consolidation move accelerating as large media houses strengthen their presence for achieving scale, reach and relevance and the interest that global players evince on the domestic market.