Media Sector Analysis Report 

• The Indian media and entertainment industry comprises of print, electronic, radio, internet and outdoor segments. With the government aggressively pushing in for digitization of TV, Multi System Cable Operators (MSOs) are expected to lose 15-20% of their subscribers to DTH (direct-to-home) services. Digitization will facilitate increased number of channels and high quality viewing. India is a fast digitizing market and the consumer shift towards digital services is exhibited through the expansion of digitized households. The digitization process in Phase I, Phase II, Phase III and Phase IV cities is seen as a positive step for the industry.
• The players in the electronic media can be classified into a three-link chain. First are the studios (inluding the animation studios), which comprise the hardware part of the industry, the second are the content providers and the third link comprises the distribution trolleys, which include the cable and satellite channels, multiplex theatres, MSOs and the DTH players.
• In India, the ratio of advertising expenditure to GDP is less than 1%. This is substantially lower in comparison to the developed economies as well as other developing economies. Interestingly, Print and TV media contribute over 75% of the advertisement spend in a year. As the Indian economy continues to develop and the media reach increases, the advertising expenditure to GDP ratio is expected to increase over the next 5 years.

• Supply
• Of the more than 70,000 newspapers printed in India, around 90% are published in Hindi and other vernacular languages. There are over 800 private satellite TV channels, permitted by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
• Demand
• The demand for regional print media is growing at a faster pace than that of English language print media. In the electronic media, the highly fragmented viewership has led to an increasing preference for niche channels.
• Barriers to entry
• In the electronic media, entry barriers are high for broadcasting since it is very capital-intensive. It involves the cost of leasing the transponder, setting up up-linking facilities, setting up pre and post-production facilities. The barriers to entry are far lower for content providers. Besides, broadcasters themselves commission programmes and finance their production. Hence margins are lower. In spite of the high barriers to entry a slew of channels across languages and genres have been launched in the recent past.
• Bargaining power of suppliers
• In the print media, it is high for newsprint suppliers. It is medium to low for content providers in the electronic media. Terrestrial broadcasters such as Doordarshan and regional broadcasters such as Sun TV actually commission time slots to content providers.
• Bargaining power of customers
• Relatively high in both print and electronic media. The consumer finds a surfeit of players to choose from. Conditional access system (CAS) and DTH services now enable the consumer to choose the channels that he wishes to view; thereby increasing his bargaining power.
• Competition
• High in print media, especially in Hindi dailies. The print sector includes listed entities like Jagran Prakashan and HT Media. Regional print media too is seeing increasing competition. Competition is high amongst broadcasters especially for general entertainment channels. The space includes listed entities like Zee TV, TV 18, UTV, NDTV and Sun TV.

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• The Media and Entertainment Industry is a key growth driver for the Indian economy. According to the FICCI-KPMG Report 2016, the sector witnessed 12.8% growth in 2015 growing from Rs 1,026 billion in 2014 to Rs 1,157 billion in 2015. Television forms the core of the Indian M&E Industry contributing to around 47% of the overall revenue of the industry.
• Total advertising spend across different media verticals was Rs 475 billion in 2015 contributing to 41% of the total Media & Entertainment industry revenues. Fueled by the continued economic growth, advertising revenues saw a growth of 14.7% in 2015.
• In 2015, subscription revenues grew at annualized growth rate 11.4%, from Rs 612 billion in 2014 to Rs 682 billion in 2015.
• FY16 saw the commencement of digitization of DAS III cities. Digitization is expected to give the consumer better control in terms of the subscription choices. It will also lead to increase in the ARPU and subsequently increase in broadcasters’ share of subscription revenues.

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• According to the FICCI-KPMG Report 2016, the industry is expected to grow to Rs 2,260 billion by 2020 at a CAGR of 14.3% during 2015-2020, which is more than double the rate of growth of global media Industry.
• Currently, advertising revenue in India contributes less than 0.5% of the GDP, compared to the average 1% contribution across most developed economies. It is expected that advertising will increasingly contribute a higher share to the GDP in the coming years and is projected to double to Rs 994 billion by 2020 growing at a CAGR of 16% during 2015-2020.
• The fortunes of the media industry are linked to the growth of the economy. India is set to grow at a rate of at least 6-7% over the long term. Rising incomes in the hands of people encourage them to spend more on discretionary items like media and entertainment. However, the trend is shifting more towards the online medium.
• The demographic profile of India also favours higher spend on entertainment, with the consuming class forming a sizeable chunk of the country's total households. Thus, this could lead to the emergence of a huge consumer base for the various products and services (including entertainment).
• New distribution technologies like DTH, Conditional Access System (CAS) and IPTV, hold the future of the media industry as increasing digitization will radically alter the ways in which consumers receive channels. The mandatory digitization all over India will bring in more subscription revenues for the broadcasters as opposed to under reporting of numbers by cable operators at present. Also, continued growth of regional media and growing strength of the filmed entertainment sector will also boost growth of the media industry.
• The advent of digital platforms will require industry participants to invest in constant innovation in products and services. Thus, going forward, innovation will be the key to attract more consumers and deliver relevant content and services that are profitable too.
• With metros already being saturated, regional markets provide ample scope for growth in the media sector. In print media, newspapers are being published in vernacular language. In television, newer channels are introduced in local languages. Tier II and Tier III cities and towns are set to drive the Indian consumption story in the next few years.

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Related Links for Media Sector
Quarterly Results | Sector Quote | Over The Years