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India’s entertainment and media market is projected to reach $36.7B by 2030
Our read
India’s entertainment boom will make attention, audience data and physical experiences more valuable retail assets, favoring omnichannel retailers that can monetize media and convert event-driven footfall.
For operators
Retail operators in India should prioritize retail-media networks, OTT-linked promotions and live-experience partnerships as digital advertising and experiential consumer spending accelerate through 2030.
Watch
Annual growth in Indian internet advertising and retailer-owned media revenue.
The report,
PwC forecasts India’s entertainment and media market will reach $36.7 billion by 2030, led by internet advertising, OTT and gaming. The report highlights AI-enabled monetisation and rising consumer spend on premium cinema, live events, ticketing and hospitality experiences.
Reported figures
From the report. Source details below
| India entertainment and media market: | $25.7 billion in 2025 to $36.7 billion by 2030 |
|---|---|
| Sector CAGR: | 7.4% through 2030 |
| Global industry growth rate: | 4% |
| Internet advertising: | $7.5 billion in 2025 to $14.3 billion by 2030; 13.9% CAGR |
| OTT video: | $3.6 billion by 2030 |
| Video games and e-sports: | $1.5 billion in 2025 to $2.6 billion by 2030; 11.3% CAGR |
| Traditional TV: | $7.2 billion in 2025 to $7.5 billion by 2030 |
| Newspapers: | $3 billion in 2025 to $3.5 billion by 2030 |
Why it matters to operators
Corporate development teams should evaluate partnerships or acquisitions in retail media, gaming, event platforms and hospitality-experience assets to capture growth across India’s expanding entertainment economy.
What to watch next
- OTT subscription, ad-supported streaming and connected-TV adoption trends.
- Gaming and e-sports spending, especially in-app purchases, hardware and tournament attendance.
- Mall footfall and tenant sales during cinema releases, concert seasons and sports events.
- Consumer discretionary-spend surveys showing substitution between experiences and goods.
- Brand-budget reallocations from open-web/social advertising to commerce-media networks.
Likely next moves
Our read of what comes next — analysis, not reported by the source.
- Build retail-media products around first-party purchase data, sponsored listings, shoppable video and campaign measurement.
- Test entertainment-linked promotions with OTT, gaming, cinema, concerts and food-delivery partners to acquire younger consumers.
- Prioritize stores and pop-ups near malls, transit hubs and live-event districts; align inventory and staffing to event calendars.
- Use loyalty programs to convert entertainment spend into retail rewards, especially for fashion, beauty, food, electronics and youth categories.
- Monitor discretionary-wallet pressure among lower- and middle-income cohorts and protect entry-price assortments.
The counter-case
The case against this reading — not reported by the source.
The forecast may overstate monetizable growth: ad spending is cyclical, OTT platforms face subscriber fatigue and price sensitivity, gaming revenue is vulnerable to regulation and payment restrictions, and premium cinema/live experiences remain discretionary. Much of the projected expansion could reflect inflation, rising digital inventory and shifts from traditional media rather than materially higher consumer spend.