INDUSTRY FORECASTS

Africa’s entertainment and media industry is forecast to grow

By our News Team | 2023

While cost-of-living increases are causing consumers to re-evaluate discretionary spending, strong growth is expected across multiple segments.

For Africa’s entertainment and media (E&M) industry, 2022 was a challenging year. Steep cost-of-living increases caused consumers in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria to re-evaluate discretionary spending on entertainment and media products and services.

However, PwC’s latest ‘Africa Entertainment & Media Outlook 2023 – 2027’ report, released this week, indicates that strong growth is expected across multiple segments, with all markets ahead of pre-Covid revenue levels.

Photo by Mizuno K from Pexels

Of the three markets covered by the study – South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria – Nigeria will have the most impressive growth story, with the country set to see E&M revenue growth at a 16.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) to 2027.

“This is the strongest rate of growth globally, and revenue in the country will more than double, from US$6-billion in 2022 to $12.9-billion in 2027,” says PwC’s Charles Stuart.

By 2027, the market will still be experiencing double-digit growth in revenue, primarily due to large gains in internet-access revenue, particularly mobile.

Over the next five years, the number of mobile internet subscribers in Nigeria will increase from 54-million to 78-million, but penetration will still be less than a third of the population in 2027.

All E & M segments in Kenya forecast to rise

Kenya’s entertainment and media market saw revenue growth of 9.8% in 2022, to total $2.3-billion. Unlike South Africa and Nigeria, all E&M segments are set to rise to 2027, with revenue reaching $3.2-billion in that year.

Internet advertising and OTT video (video streamed over the internet) will be the fastest-rising segments in Kenya. OTT revenue will more than double from $6-million in 2022 to $14.2-million in 2027.

Like South Africa and Nigeria, Kenya’s internet-access segment will see the largest increase in revenue. By the end of the forecast period, mobile internet penetration will stand at 58.0% in Kenya, and mobile will take an 83.9% share of internet-access revenue.

Growth in South Africa’s E&M market stabilised to 8.8% in 2022, down from 15.4% in 2021 — when the market was rebounding after the end of the pandemic. Growth continues to be healthy and will outpace the global average over each year of the forecast period.

The market will see strong growth in OTT and cinema, but the largest revenue gains will come from growth in the internet-access segment, as new users take out subscriptions to mobile and fixed broadband services, and existing customers upgrade their packages.

You can read the full report here.

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