Digitisation to drive media & entertainment industry growth

The Indian media & entertainment industry grew 11.8% last year over 2012, touching Rs 91,800 crore on the back of digitisation growth in regional media, according to a KPMG report released at 15th Ficci Frames global convention on Wednesday.

The overall growth rate remained muted, with a slow GDP growth and a weak rupee thus impacting advertising.

The advertising industry faced a rough year in 2012 and there were expectations for a better performance in 2013. But the continued economic slowdown, depreciation of the rupee and low GDP growth resulted in persistent negative sentiment, leading to a muted growth rate for the industry in 2013.

Punit Goenka, CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd, in his keynote address at the Ficci Frames inauguration said the industry has reached at a juncture which is filled with opportunities and challenges and is no longer a rapidly growing Indian media and entertainment industry.

"What I firmly believe is that, this industry has all that it takes to have global aspirations. This industry is blessed with such great talent and potential, that it has all the required elements to produce content which is of international standards, to devise world class content distribution platforms, and to entertain and engage the global audience. It is extremely essential for us to prepare ourselves to face the changing dynamics of this global industry," said Goenka.

In 2013, the total advertising spend from various sectors across all media was estimated at Rs 36,250 crore. Among various media, print and television continued to be the primary media platforms, claiming nearly 82% of total revenue and could continue to be the most dominant media for the next five years. The buzzword last year, however, was 'digital' (medium), whose advertising revenue grew 38.7% occupying a market share of 8.3% and the trend is expected to continue in 2014.

The year 2014 is expected to be a promising year due to the impending national elections and high expectations from sectors like FMCG, automobile (multiple new launches planned) and financial services, with the overall growth of the advertising market projected at 13.1%.