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UK entertainment & media industry projected to hit £64bn by 2018

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By John Glenday, Reporter

June 4, 2014 | 2 min read

The latest forecast for the UK entertainment and media industry has painted a picture of sustained optimism in the sector, with rapid expansion in internet advertising, internet access, OOH advertising, video games and TV advertising, fuelling its total valuation to £64bn by 2018.

This figure is arrived at courtesy of a compounded annual growth rate of 3.1 per cent through 2013-18 with the country maintaining its position as the second largest E&M market in the EMEA behind Germany.

Digital E&M spend (excluding spend on internet access) is forecast to eclipse even this however with compounded growth of 10.9 per cent over the same period.

PwC’s latest Global Entertainment and Media report also forecasts 15.5bn app downloads in the UK by 2018 – by which time 50 per cent of the population will own a tablet and 73 per cent will own a smartphone.

2018 will also be a landmark date for e-books if the projections come good with the digital medium overtaking print sales by this date.

Phil Stokes, Entertainment and Media lead partner at PwC, said: “This growth is being driven by the internet and by consumers’ love of new technology, particularly mobile technology and applications powered by analytics and the cloud; they demand excellence in customer experience – a social experience as well as a personal one.”

Commenting on the exponential technological changes powering this growth Owen Sagness, GM of Microsoft Advertising & Online UK, added: “The increase of devices within the home, and growth of smartphone and tablet popularity, indicate that consumer behaviour is still evolving at an extremely fast rate. Brands need to keep up with consumer expectations. The two key trends we see dominating relate to how well brand experiences are delivered seamlessly across the devices and how well brands recognise what value they can deliver beyond communicating their message.

"The exponential growth of data and the insights we can draw from it provides marketers the ability to connect with consumers better than they ever have before. The opportunity and reward of creating more relevant and impactful advertising is huge. At its best, advertising is the new entertainment.”

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