Irish entertainment and media industry set to grow by annual rate of 3.6pc to 2027 – PwC

The Irish entertainment and media industry is expected to grow at an annual rate of 3.62pc to 2027, according to a new report by PwC.

The industry’s revenues are anticipated to rise to €6.12bn by 2027, up €1bn from last year’s figures.

This growth is expected to be driven by an increase in internet access, as well as a rise in both mobile advertising and video-on-demand subscriptions here.

Revenues in Ireland’s internet access market will increase by 6.5pc in the period, rising to €2.2bn by 2027. This growth will be fuelled by the Irish mobile market, with revenues from mobile internet expected to overtake the broadband sector for the first time next year.

The mobile internet access market is anticipated to rise at 8.7pc to €1.2bn by the end of 2027, while the broadband market here will grow at a slower pace of 4.3pc to reach €1bn.

Internet advertising will also record growth, the report found. The majority of growth will be driven by the mobile sector, with this area accounting for 56pc of total internet advertising by 2027.

The fastest growing category is anticipated to be video display advertising, while paid search will drop.

PwC also pointed to further growth in the Irish video-on-demand market, which grew during the pandemic.

This market, which includes subscription video and transactional video, will expand by almost 9pc to see revenues of more than €430m a year by 2027.

Despite a surge in subscribers in recent years, PwC expects new member numbers to slow down due to consumer spending slowdown, platform maturity and market penetration saturation.

Overall growth in this sector will drop to 4.4pc in 2027, plummeting from 19pc growth last year.

Ireland is expected to remain a hub for foreign filmmakers, particularly due to its tax credit incentive, while Irish cinema revenue will reach €161m by 2027.

Other areas of growth include the music and radio market. Live music has recorded strong demand since the easing of pandemic restrictions.

Social gaming, including app-based games on smartphones, will overtake traditional gaming on PCs and consoles in Ireland in the coming years.

PwC anticipates that digital revenue for newspapers and magazines will grow to €113m from €88m in the next five years. This uptick in digital readerships will not be enough to outpace the decline in print sales, which will drop to €175m in 2027 from almost €300m currently.

Generative AI is set to be particularly disruptive to the entertainment and media industry, particularly related to internet advertising space. Big Tech companies recently revealed that they will use AI to create campaigns in the future.

“The EU AI Act is currently under examination by the European Data Protection Board and will soon come into effect,” PwC entertainment and media practice director Conor Forde said.

“As organisations assess their approach to Generative AI, they will need to identify and adhere to responsible AI principles by addressing critical risks related to transparency, privacy and consent.”

Reporting On: www.independent.ie