Singapore – In many markets the entertainment and media (E&M) industry has been profoundly changed as the ongoing consumer migration to digital has accelerated due largely to the device revolution. It’s the ‘golden age of the digitally empowered consumer’, with the demand for digital experiences increasing and becoming the norm, according to the latest Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2011-2015 from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). While digital currently accounts for just over a quarter of the total E&M industry revenues, it will account for 58.7% of all growth in spending during the next five years, according to the PwC report. The TV industry’s enthusiasm in embracing social media and expanding its reach to digital devices and channels has paid off in ad revenues. Global TV ad spend posted a double-digit growth for the first time in five years, surging 10.2% in 2010. A return to pre-recessionary ad spending, the FIFA World Cup, and increased TV viewing helped by growing Internet usage helped the medium rebound strongly. TV advertising is expected to grow by 6.5% compounded annually. Internet ad spend is projected to show a 13.0% compound annual increase in the next five years. TV advertising in APAC rose to 9% last year, while TV subscriptions and license fees grew by 12.6%. TV ad spend is projected to grow at 8.3% compounded annually in the next five years, while TV subscriptions and license fees is seen growing 10.3% compounded annually. Internet advertising, which grew 15.2% last year, is projected to grow at a compounded annual rate of 14.6% until 2015. Overall E&M spending rose by 4.6% to US$1.4 trillion in 2010 as the global economy began to recover from the recession, and is expected to grow at a 5.7% compound annual rate to US$1.9 trillion in 2015. In Asia Pacific, E&M spending rose by 6.3%, up from 1.8% in 2009. China and India, largely unscathed by the global recession, showed significantly higher spending growth rates at 13.9% and 13.6% respectively. PwC expects spending in the region to increase at a 6.5% compound annual rate to US$541 billion in 2015 from US$395 billion in 2010.
