India is one of the fastest growing Media and Entertainment market in the world and produces highest number of films in the world every year.
Australian film industry, also known as the Australian cinema industry, has a long and diverse history, with notable successes in both domestic and international markets.
SOLID DEMAND:
- India’s internet users are expected to reach 900 million by 2025, from approx. 622 million in 2020, increasing at a CAGR of 45% until 2025 according to a report published by IAMAI and Kantar Research.
- The advertising-based video-on-demand (AVoD) segment is expected to grow at a CAGR of 24% to reach US$ 2.6 billion by 2025.
DRIVING ADVANTAGE:
- Within the M&E sector, TV remains the largest segment and is likely to post a CAGR of 7% to Rs. 847 billion (US$ 12.01 billion) by 2023, according to a FICCI-EY report.
- By 2025, the county's mobile gaming market is poised to reach US$ 7 billion.
GOVERNMENT POLICIES:
- In November 2021, the Indian government announced that it is operating towards creating a National Centre of Excellence for AVGC (animation, visual effects, gaming and comics).
- The Government of India has also extended the FDI limit from 74% to 100%.
RISE IN INVESTMENTS:
- The FDI inflows in the information and broadcasting sector (including print media) stood at US$ 9.85 billion between April 2000-September 2022.
- Increased prominence on animated intellectual property (IP) content, the rapid growth of OTT channels, and large-scale investments in VFX by studios have provided animation and VFX studios with opportunities in domestic and international markets.
- Social gaming platform WinZO, with Kalaari Capital, announced a new investment initiative, ‘Gaming Lab’, to promote and support India’s gaming ecosystem in November 2021.
INTRODUCTION
Indian Media and Entertainment (M&E) industry is a sunrise sector for the economy and is making significant strides. Increasing accessibility to fast and cheap internet, rising incomes, and increasing purchases of consumers have significantly aided the industry. The country’s M&E industry is unique as compared to other markets. The industry is well known for its extremely high volumes and rising Average Revenue Per User (ARPU).
This crucially assisted the country’s media industry, which made it leading in digital espousal, and provided companies with continuous rich data to understand their customers in a much better way. India has also experienced growing opportunities in the VFX sector as the focus shifted globally to India as a preferred content creator.
The Indian M&E industry is on the verge of an impregnable phase of growth and development, backed by rising consumer demand and improving advertising revenue, Proving its elasticity to the world. According to a FICCI-EY report, from 0.38% in 2019, the advertising-to-GDP ratio is estimated to reach 0.4% by 2025.
MARKET DIMENSIONS
Investment opportunities in the Indian film and media sector include the production and distribution of Cinema and television shows, also investment in digital media companies and online streaming platforms.
India’s Media and Entertainment industry is estimated to reach Rs. 4,30,401 crores (US$ 53.99 billion) by 2026, as per the report by the PwC.Advertising revenue in India is gauging to reach Rs. 394 billion (US$ 5.42 billion) by 2024.Television would account for 40% of the Indian media market in 2024, followed by print media (13%), digital advertising (12%), cinema (9%), and the OTT and gaming industries (8%).
By the end of 2024, the advertising revenue in India is projected to reach Rs. 394 billion (US$ 5.42 billion). The country’s music industry is expected to reach US$ 366 million by 2024 from US$ 199 million in 2019. An audience measurement and analytics company, Gaana, the streaming service owned by Times Internet Ltd., had a 30% market share, followed by JioSaavn (24%), Wynk Music (15%), Spotify (15%), Google Play Music (10%), and others (6%) in 2020, according to a study conducted by Kantar and VTION.
The Indian mobile gaming market is growing at a stride in collaboration with the global trend and is expected to reach US$ 7 billion in 2025.
The online gaming market in India is projected to reach Rs. 155 billion (US$ 2.12 billion) by 2023, from Rs. 76 billion (US$ 1.08 billion) in 2020, due to a rapid increase in consumption.
India’s SVOD subscriptions are expected to increase by 51% compared to 2019 and are estimated to reach 90-100 million by 2022, as stated by BCG.
By 2025, the number of connected smart televisions are expected to reach ~40-50 million.
India’s subscription revenue is projected to grow at a CAGR of 2% and reach Rs. 432 billion (US$ 4.94 billion). Vital development drivers included rising demand for content among users and affordable subscription packages.
INVESTMENTS AND GROWTH
Some recent developments in the M&E industry are:
In November 2021, social gaming platform WinZO, with Kalaari Capital announced a new investment initiative, ‘Gaming Lab’, to encourage and support India’s gaming ecosystem.
In November 2021, media consulting firm Ormax Media, launched an OTT Brand Health
Tracking Tool called Ormax Brand Monitor (OBM). The tool is based on syndicated research conducted every month among SVOD & AVOD audiences across India, to track the performance of 16 OTT platforms on key brand measures.
The exclusive rights for the television broadcast of the Indian Premier League (IPL) from 2023-2027 was acquired by DisneyStar, in June 2022.
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
There are many government initiatives and some of the vital initiatives are:
 In February 2021, Prasar Bharati (India) and PSM (the official State Media of Maldives) inked an agreement to facilitate collaboration and capacity building in the field of broadcasting.
In February 2021, the digital entertainment committee of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) finalised a code of conduct to form the basis for self-regulation code for OTT content.
To ease filming in railways, the Film Facilitation Office (FFO) set up in the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) collaborated with the Ministry of Railways to develop an integrated single window filming mechanism to streamline the permission process for filming across railway premises.
In November 2021, the government announced that it is working towards creating a National Centre of Excellence for AVGC (animation, visual effects, gaming and comics).
In June 2021, the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting notified the Cable Television Network (Amendment) Rules, 2021, which aims to establish a three-layer statutory mechanism for citizens to raise grievances with respect to broadcasted content.
THE FUTURE AHEAD
Due to rising incomes, rising internet usage, and a growing push toward digital adoption, the Indian M&E industry is anticipated to grow much more quickly than the global average rate. In the long run the rise of the India’s M&E industry is expected in retail advertisement on the back of several players entering the food and beverages segment, E-commerce gaining more popularity in the country, and domestic companies testing out the waters. India’s rural regions are expected to be the next regions for growth. India has also gotten on board with 5G and is already planning for 6G well ahead of the future.
The Australian media industry, which encompasses print, broadcast, online, and music, has experienced steady growth in nearly every area in recent years. Australia has retained independent ownership, with chains Hoyts and Greater Union owning the next largest shares. Australia is an important industry that generates revenue and creates employment opportunities. While both countries have their own unique characteristics, there are also similarities and areas of potential collaboration. The Australian film industry has been increasingly focused on promoting diversity and representation, with initiatives such as the Screen Australia Indigenous Department, which supports Indigenous Australians working in the film industry, and the Screen Australia Gender Matters program, which aims to increase the number of female-led productions. Overall, the Australian film industry continues to produce a diverse range of films and has seen notable success both domestically and internationally. There is potential for collaboration between the film and media sectors in India and Australia, particularly in areas such as co-production and distribution. Both countries have unique cultural identities and stories to tell, and there is potential to create content that appeals to audiences in both countries and beyond. The expansion of digital media and online streaming platforms also presents opportunities for collaboration, with potential for Indian and Australian companies to partner in the development of new content and platforms.