Mumbai: The television segment grew by five per cent in 2021 to reach Rs 720 billion, according to FICCI-EY media and entertainment report 2022 unveiled at the Dubai Expo on Monday. TV advertising revenues stood at Rs 313 billion and distribution revenues at Rs 407 billion at the end of 2021, the report further stated.
According to the report, television advertising grew by 25 per cent in 2021 after recovering from a 21.5 per cent drop in 2020, and two per cent short of 2019 levels. The recovery was mainly volume-driven, though certain pockets like regional entertainment, news and sports did witness rate growth towards the end of 2021.
Hindi language pay TV viewership declined resulting into increased cost-per-rating-point (CPRPs) for advertisers while CPRPs for regional channels remained constant in 2021. Due to this, many advertisers increased their share of spends on regional TV products and regional channels received 26 per cent more ad volumes than national channels in 2021.
TV subscription revenue continued to decline for the second year in a row showing degrowth of 6.2 per cent. This was mainly driven by the reduction in six million pay TV homes and a fall in consumer end average revenue per user (ARPUs). The connected TV base in India increased to 10 million sets. The time spent on TV fell by eight per cent from 2020 levels and was slightly lower than 2019 levels for Hindi speaking markets (HSM).
The number of pay channels increased by 21 whereas the number of free-to-air channels decreased by 26 in September 2021, which “reflects a move by broadcasters to build stronger subscription revenue products through bouquets,” according to the report. The total number of TV channels declined marginally to 906 from 911.
“While television households will continue to grow at one per cent till 2025, we expect growth to be driven by connected TVs which could cross 40 million by 2025 and free television which could cross 50 million, thereby stressing the core pay television market,” said the report.
E&Y estimates television revenues to grow to Rs 826 billion by 2024. The estimates are subject to the implementation of ad caps and regulatory restrictions on pricing, it noted. Going forward, E&Y predicts that local cable operators (LCO) would operate a hybrid business model i.e., provide a linear TV wire plus a broadband connection to offer efficient content services, broadband connectivity, smart home services, and locality/community services.
“India has always been a different kind of media and entertainment market. High on volume and low on ARPU, yet up top with the rest on technology and ahead of the pack when it comes to digital adoption,” commented E&Y media and entertainment sector leader Ashish Pherwani. “We love quantity and bundles; but we pay for value. We are amongst the top smartphone markets; and have a large feature phone base. We subscribe to global OTT platforms; yet binge on Youtube and watch free satellite TV. And we are thirsting for curated knowledge and escapism while creating millions of pieces of content each day ourselves.”
