Entertainment & Media Outlook – August 2025

Irish Entertainment & Media industry set to grow 3.3% annually to 2029 - says PwC Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025 - 2029 

The Irish Entertainment & Media (E&M) industry is set to grow at an annual rate of 3.3% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) to 2029 reaching €7.5bn, up from €6.4bn in 2024. This growth is primarily fuelled by increasing connectivity, continued growth in internet advertising and video on demand and compares to Irish CAGR of 2.9% for last year for the five years to 2028. 

Globally, the Entertainment & Media industry is expected to grow at 3.7% CAGR in the period. This boost will see the industry’s global revenues reach €3trn in 2029, up from €2.5trn in 2024. 

This is according to PwC’s latest Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025-2029, the 26th annual analysis and forecast of E&M spending by consumers and advertisers across 54 countries and territories and published in Ireland today.  The Outlook includes Ireland’s E&M industry including sectors such as cinema; connectivity service; internet advertising; music, radio and podcasts; newspapers, consumer magazines and books; out-of-home (OOH) advertising; video-on-demand (VOD); traditional TV and video games. 

Amid economic uncertainty, slower growth in consumer spending and heightened competition both domestically and internationally, the Irish E&M industry has shown steady growth, with total Irish E&M revenues rising 3% from €6.2bn in 2023 to €6.4bn in 2024. Projected annual growth to 2029 in the Irish market (3.3% CAGR) is behind the global forecast of 3.7% CAGR, mostly due to the slower growth in the Video Gaming segment which is largely down to the decline of traditional gaming. 

Speaking at the launch, Amy Ball, Partner, PwC Ireland Entertainment & Media Practice, said:  

“As the E&M industry continues to be impacted by broader economic uncertainty and slower consumer spending, the Irish E&M industry continues to show steady growth and resilience. Advertising is emerging as the leading powerhouse of the Irish entertainment and media industry’s revenues – a transformation expected to continue as AI transforms delivery models, democratises content production, serves highly curated content experiences and reduces barriers to entry. The E&M industry has always been at the forefront of technological innovation, but companies will need to remain nimble and proactive to embrace the future and satisfy consumers in an ecosystem that rewards creativity and tailored content.” 

The three key drivers for Entertainment & Media growth in Ireland are:  

1. Ireland’s Internet Service Revenues made up 42% of total E&M revenue in 2024 

Ireland’s Internet Service revenues reached €2.6bn in 2024, accounting for more than 40% of Ireland’s total E&M revenue and is set to rise to €3.1bn in 2029, growing at a CAGR of 2.5% versus 2.8% globally. Fixed broadband subscriptions in Ireland grew year-on-year in 2024 by 5.7% to 1.9 million and are expected to grow at 5% CAGR over the five-year period to 2.4 million.  

Mobile service revenue will increase at a 3.4% CAGR, to €1.7bn in 2029, while fixed service revenue will show slower growth at a 1.4% CAGR, rising to €1.3bn in 2029. Ireland has made significant strides in expanding 5G capabilities and since September 2020, all Irish mobile operators had launched commercial 5G services. 5G subscription penetration will overtake 4G in 2025 and is forecast to increase to a penetration of 182% by 2029 (which means that there will be more than one device using a sim card, relative to every person in Ireland). The government aims to extend 5G coverage to all populated areas by 2030.  

2. Internet Advertising: Revenues to reach €1.8bn by 2029 

Internet advertising revenue in Ireland will increase at a 9.2% CAGR (versus 8.4% globally) between 2024 and 2029, increasing to €1.8bn. Year-on-year growth was 12.4% in 2024 and will continue in double-digits until 2026, eventually slowing to 5.2% by 2029. The fastest-growing market category is video advertising, which will see an increase at a 12.6% CAGR to €198mn over the forecast period.  

Other display (traditional non-video ads) will also see strong growth, with an increase at a 9.2% CAGR expected, while paid search will see an increase at an 8.3% CAGR and classified (ads posted in a categorical listing of products or services) an increase at a 4% CAGR over the forecast period. The biggest market category is paid search, which accounted for 58.7% of total Internet advertising revenue in 2024. This is followed by other display (28.7%), video (9.5%) and classified (3.1%).   

In Ireland by 2029 growth in advertising revenue will surpass consumer E&M spending 

Globally in 2024, advertising revenue (i.e advertising spend by marketers) and consumer revenue (i.e. what consumers spend on subscriptions, ticket sales, buying games etc) were more or less at parity. In Ireland in 2024 consumer spend was ahead at €2bn versus €1.7bn for advertising. However, in Ireland by 2029 advertising revenue is forecast to surpass consumer spending as it is expected to grow at a 6.1% CAGR to €2.3bn, while consumer spend will slow to a 1.9% CAGR reaching €2.2bn.  

3. Ireland’s Video-On-Demand (VOD) market expects growth of 6.7% CAGR to produce revenues of €309mn in 2029 

Ireland’s VOD market has more than doubled in size since 2020, reaching total revenue of €223mn  in 2024. Continued expansion has seen households increasingly “stack” multiple streaming services. This will ensure there is room for further growth, with total VOD revenue rising at a 6.7% CAGR (6.4% CAGR globally) to reach €309mn in 2029. At this time, subscription video on demand (SVOD) platforms will account for 85% of the total market, with advertising-supported VOD (AVOD) accounting for 11.3%. 

However, as streaming service usage and consumer uptake is rising, service-providers face increased competition and challenges in getting consumers to pay more for digital goods and services. Irish subscriptions to VOD services are expected to rise to 2.6 million in 2029 from 1.9 million in 2024 – representing a 6% CAGR (compared with 5.4% CAGR globally).  

While advertising on SVOD platforms has not yet made inroads in Ireland, globally there is a rise of ad-supported tiers and hybrid models within the VOD ecosystem as leading providers transition from rapid subscriber acquisition to sustainable growth and profitability. 

Other areas of interest for Ireland include: 

1. Irish video gaming industry to grow to €503mn in 2029 

Ireland’s total video games revenue was €397mn in 2024 and it is expected to reach €503mn by 2029 after increasing at a 4.8% CAGR (compared to 5.7% CAGR globally).  

Social and casual gaming (online gaming) will rise to €240mn in 2029 after increasing at a 5.9% CAGR. A paradigm shift in Ireland’s video games market will be witnessed in 2029, when social/casual gaming revenue will overtake traditional gaming (physical gaming on PCs and games consoles), which has to date been against the global trend. Although the larger portion of the expected growth is provided by app-based social and casual gaming, in-app games advertising is rapidly becoming a notable presence in the Irish sector, rising to €51mn by 2029, increasing at a 9.8% CAGR. 

2. Offline Entertainment, including Cinema and Live Music, continues to grow at a steady pace 

Irish cinema revenue in 2024 reached €101mn. Ireland's cinema industry is forecasted to grow 4.7% CAGR over the forecast period to €126mn, ahead of global growth of 4.1% CAGR.  The number of cinema admissions in Ireland is expected to grow from 11.32 million in 2024 to 12.76 million in 2029, with a CAGR of 2.4%.  The Irish film and television industry supports 15,000 full-time jobs and its Gross Valued Added (GVA) is worth over €1bn. 

The country’s long-standing Section 481 tax credit is worth 32% of eligible Irish spend and continues to attract international projects.   

Ireland’s total music and radio revenue is forecast to rise at a 2.2% CAGR to total €517mn in 2029 (compared to 2.4% CAGR globally). Ireland’s music revenue accounted for €355mn in 2024, with 66% of that made up of live music revenue. Live music revenue is expected to grow at 2% CAGR to €266mn in 2029, compared with 2.3% globally. 

3. Revenues continue to shift in the E&M Industry 

Digital advertising dominates the fastest-growing segments while physical media lags. A look at the top three fastest-growing and the three fastest-declining Irish E&M metrics over the next five years reveals how value is in motion in this industry. Internet advertising, whether generated from pure-play sources or from digital advertising revenues associated with other segments, such as ad-supported video-on-demand (AVOD), dominates at the top end. Several of the fastest-declining metrics, including physical PC games and print advertising in newspapers and magazines, have roots in physical media. 

AI: Creating new business models and hyper personalisation 

AI is already having a significant impact on major E&M sectors. Advertising, in particular, will be aided with hyper-personalisation of content to specific end-users more likely to purchase advertised products.  

A further fast-growing area of impact from AI is on production processes for movies, video games, and music, with AI presenting an ability to drastically reduce risk and development time when it comes to creating and editing content. AI is also having an impact at the point of delivery for games, with video game companies now using it to predict the likely churn point of customers in different demographics and targeting them with ads for the next game at the right time.   

Overall, E&M companies are investing in AI and experimenting with its potential applications, while they must also contend with regulatory frameworks and safeguards put in place to protect content creators and intellectual property. But the much greater long-term impact from emerging technology comes when it brings the ability to operate in new ways, create new business models and access previously untapped revenue streams. With AI, this value-creating potential is arguably greater than with any previous technology and will represent a significant influence on the E&M industry in the years to come.  

Naomi Ryan, Senior Manager, PwC Ireland Entertainment & Media Practice, concluded: “Consumers have never had as numerous or diverse choices of entertainment services on offer, but this competition, paired with economic uncertainty and rising costs, is seeing consumer E&M spend growth slow. If entertainment and media businesses are to capture new audiences and generate growth, they must be thinking about the connected ecosystems in which they operate.  They must leverage the power of advertising and AI, the combination of which is allowing for far more cost-effective and personalised content creation and engagement models.” 

ENDS

Notes to the Editor

Link to Report/executive summary

https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/business-model-reinvention/outlook/insights-and-perspectives.html  

About the PwC Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2025-2029 

The PwC Global Entertainment and Media Outlook is an annual report covering the industry including in Ireland. A total of 54 countries and territories, spread across North America, Western Europe, Central Europe, Middle East & Africa, Latin America and Asia Pacific, are represented within the Outlook. The ‘Rest of MENA (Middle East and North Africa)’  grouping is treated as a territory and comprises Algeria, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman and Qatar. This year, it expands its coverage with the inclusion of Mauritius and Oceania as a reported region. These 54 territories account for around 74% of the global population, and the sum of all territories generates the ‘total’ estimate. The forecasting process begins with the collection of accurate and comprehensive historical data from publicly available sources such as trade associations and government agencies, which are cited when used directly. To supplement this, proprietary insights are gathered through interviews with industry associations, regulators, and leading market players. This combination of public and private data ensures a robust foundation for building forecasts.