Media & entertainment: ‘Digital will drive growth’

The value of SA’s entertainment and media industry is expected to grow from R125.7bn in 2015 to R173.3bn in 2020, at a compound annual growth rate of 6.6%.

According to PwC’s latest Entertainment & Media Outlook, SA’s Internet access market will rise from R39.4bn in 2015 to R68.5bn in 2020.

Vicki Myburgh, entertainment & media industry leader for PwC Southern Africa, notes that digital spend is expected to drive overall media growth.

Aside from the Internet, Myburgh predicts growth will also take place in the video game market, filmed entertainment and television.

Pay-TV subscription revenues are expected to expand by 5% to reach R25.2bn in 2020.

Myburgh says in 2015 total newspaper revenue was worth R9.1 bn but this figure is expected to drop to R8.1bn in 2020. Circulation figures are also forecast to start declining, as price increases will be unable to compensate for the declining numbers of copies sold.

SA’s consumer magazine market is also forecast to decline in coming years but a growing number of South Africans are getting access to magazine content and websites through their smart devices; and the boom in smartphone and tablet ownership will be the biggest driver of digital magazine revenue growth over the forecast period.