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PwC: Romania’s E&M industry expected to increase by 8% in 2021

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PwC Romania announced on Tuesday that the entertainment and media (E&M) industry in Romania is expected to achieve year-on-year growth of 8.09% in 2021 to a total value of €2.62bln, taking it above the pre-pandemic level (€2.53bln in 2019), according to the PwC report Outlook 2021–2025.

Estimates show that the industry will continue to increase until 2025, with an annual average growth rate of 7.68%.

“E&M industry revenues in Romania decreased by 4.23% last year, due to the pandemic-related restrictions, with cinemas being the most affected (…) revenue estimates for the coming years are encouraging,” said Florin Deaconescu, partner and leader of the Technology, Media and Telecom sector at PwC Romania.

At the regional level, the Romanian E&M industry registered the smallest decrease in 2020 of all the Central and Eastern European markets included in the report.

With most people staying at home, the OTT services market (Netflix or HBO Go) in Romania recorded the highest growth in the media and entertainment market last year, of 27.16%, to €29mln and it is expected to continue to grow in 2021 at an estimated rate of 22.43% year-on-year €36mln.

The second largest increase in the market in 2020 was recorded by video games and e-sports, of 17,08% to €154mln and PwC specialists estimate 18.94% growth to €184mln for 2021. 

In 2020, internet advertising recorded an increase of 8.33% to €106mln. This segment will continue to grow in 2021, by 11.78% to €118mln. Romania has the smallest internet advertising market in Central and Eastern Europe, but it has the fastest growth rate.

The restrictions caused by the pandemic had a positive effect on book sales, which increased by 3.63% in 2020 to a value of €67mln and stagnation is expected in 2021.

Television and video content consumed at home stagnated last year at a value of €515mln with similar performance being expected in 2021. 

Revenues from TV advertising increased last year by over 2% to €312mln and are estimated to reach €339mln in 2021.

The report indicated that internet access spending continues to be the largest sector of the industry, with 41% of the market. In 2020 it recorded a year-on-year decrease of 3.95% to €1bln, but the report shows a revival in 2021 with an increase of 8.44%.

PwC explained that with cinemas closed, the film industry recorded an 80% drop last year to EUR 12 million. The sector is expected to recover this year with revenues of €24mln, but that is well below the EUR 60 million recorded in 2019.