Covid-19 accelerates growth in digital entertainment

Dubai - Consumers in the region are taking more control of their own media consumption, faced with an ever-expanding range of channels and content

The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the shift towards digital entertainment, requiring companies across the UAE and Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region to change their business models to capture the growth in on-demand content.

According to a recent PwC report on the outlook for the entertainment industry in the Mena region, the damage to physical media spending, from cinema box office takings to concerts, corporate events and media advertising, means that revenues in the region are expected to fall by 8.3 per cent to $19.7 billion. However, spending is estimated to gradually recover to 2019 levels based on a successful Covid-19 vaccine being widely available in the region, and to continue to grow from 2022 onwards. Overall, entertainment and media revenues are expected to increase by three per cent in the region between 2019 and 2024, exceeding the two per cent rise forecast globally.

Fadi Komati, Technology Consulting partner at PwC Middle East, said that the Covid-19 pandemic and its after-effects have “pulled the future forward”, as consumers in the region take more control of their own media consumption, faced with an ever-expanding range of channels and content.

“This would not have been possible without the accelerated adoption of 5G technology in some markets, which has enabled governments to expand digital infrastructure such as high-speed broadband access, and content delivery networks to enable content streaming and new content consumption experiences at home and on the go,” he said. “Additionally, the advent of newer 5G technologies has provided opportunities to enhance government transparency and enabled new and more inclusive ways of engaging with the public.”

PwC’s report found that the pandemic has accelerated the adoption of streamed video content (OTT video) and music in the region and boosted the popularity of online gaming even further. In fact, when national lockdowns began, 50 per cent of OTT video subscribers increased the amount of time they spent watching. Digital audio – both streamed or downloaded music and podcasts – has also grown in popularity. In 2020, music-streaming platform Anghami reported a 25 per cent increase in music listeners, compared with 2019.

rohma@khaleejtimes.com