Cinema box office revenues in Mena to hit $1b by 2024

Cinema box office revenues in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region are expected to grow by four per cent to $1 billion (Dh3.7 billion) by 2024, compared to a 2.4 per cent decline worldwide, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), a global auditing consultancy.

Research data analysed by Finaria also showed that globally the combined revenues in the box office industry plummeted by 71.5 per cent from $42.5 billion in 2019 to approximately $31 billion last year.

This reflects a shift in the global cinema industry landscape where growth has traditionally been driven by the countries outside of the Mena region. However, expansion throughout the Arab world and Middle East, specifically in Saudi Arabia, has unlocked a lucrative economic opportunity and Saudi Arabia has now become a major contributor to the growth of the global cinema industry.

The news comes as organisers, GM Events, released the dates for the fourth edition of the Meta Cinema Forum — the largest cinema convention in the Middle East and Africa — from October 26-28, 2021 in Dubai. It also follows shortly after Dubai government announced the lifting of restrictions on public entertainment events as part of a gradual opening up of the country’s borders to select countries that have recovered from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Meta Cinema Forum, which takes place amid the World Expo 2020 – one of the largest global events which is taking place for the first time in the Middle East – will host a conference, awards, seminars, workshops, masterclasses, special screenings, premieres, product presentations, slates, exhibitions and live demonstrations. The conference will tackle industry issues as well as regional industry-specific discussions on the film industry across Africa, Asia, South Asia and the Middle East.

“Back for its 4th edition, the Meta Cinema Forum, now expanding to cover markets across including Levant, Turkey and Indian subcontinent, is sure to be the hottest cinema event in year 2021.” Said Leila Masinaei, managing partner, Great Mind Events Management. “The event is unique in that it highlights the only region with an expanding cinema sector, with participants actively attending to source new design ideas, F&B concepts, technological innovation and alternative content.”

Cinemas in many markets are still closed and few countries have opened cinema halls while many have permanently closed as a result of being significantly financially impacted by Covid-19. However, unlike many other markets, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (KSA) box office was up three per cent to $115 million in 2020, the PwC report says. By 2030, one of the governing authorities to regulate and operate cinemas, the General Commission for Audiovisual Media (GCAM), expects there to be around 350 cinemas and 2,500 movie screens in the country, and the industry will be worth around $1 billion.

— sandhya@khaleejtimes.com