India's M&E among the fastest growing markets in the global $3 trillion industry: PwC report

India has emerged as one of the fastest-growing media and entertainment (M&E) markets globally, with a compound annual growth rate exceeding 7.5%, as the subcontinent spearheads a transformation that is propelling the global M&E industry towards $3.5 trillion by 2029, according to PwC's latest Global Entertainment & Media Outlook report.

The growth is driven primarily by internet advertising, which is growing at 15.9% annually. This explosive growth stems from several converging factors: expanding internet penetration, rising 5G connectivity adoption, and the surging popularity of social media and short-form video content amongst India's massive population.

Across the globe, the industry approached $3 trillion in revenue last year and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 3.7% through 2029—outpacing global economic growth despite facing headwinds from economic uncertainty and constrained consumer spending.

Advertising takes centre stage

The most striking revelation from the comprehensive analysis is advertising's meteoric rise as the industry's primary growth engine.

Whilst subscription-based and paid content services face mounting pressure from market saturation and economic constraints, advertising revenues are surging at an impressive 6.1% compound annual growth rate, three times faster than the consumer category's modest 2% growth.

The fastest-growing revenue streams paint a clear picture of advertising's dominance: retail advertising leads at 15% growth, followed closely by social and mobile on-stream video advertising, also at 15%, and connected TV in-stream internet advertising at 14%.

Digital advertising formats, which already account for 72% of overall advertising revenue in 2024, are projected to command 80% of the market by 2029.

This shift is being supercharged by artificial intelligence and hyper-personalisation technologies that promise more targeted and effective advertising experiences.

The connected television revolution exemplifies this transformation. In 2020, connected TV advertising revenue represented merely 5.9% of traditional broadcast television advertising.

By 2024, this figure had quadrupled to 22%, and projections suggest it will reach a staggering $51 billion by 2029—equivalent to 45% of traditional broadcast TV advertising revenue.

Gaming and cinema trends

The global video gaming industry continues its remarkable trajectory, with revenues of $224 billion in 2024 expected to reach nearly $300 billion by 2029. Notably, gaming revenues now exceed the combined revenues of the movie and music industries, cementing its position as a cornerstone of modern entertainment.

Cinema is experiencing its own transformation, with global box office spending projected to rise from $33 billion in 2024 to $41.5 billion in 2029. However, consumer preferences are shifting decidedly towards locally produced films, with the top five US studios' global market share declining from over 60% pre-pandemic to 51% in 2024.

The report highlights a persistent paradox: whilst consumers spend increasing amounts of their leisure time online, they continue to allocate the majority of their entertainment budgets to offline experiences.

In 2024, non-digital formats accounted for 61% of consumer revenue, a proportion expected to remain relatively stable throughout the forecast period.