India emerges among the fastest-growing E&M markets, driven by internet ad surge: PwC
The PwC report forecasts a robust compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 7.5% for India’s E&M sector, significantly outpacing the global average of 3.7%.
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India is cementing its position as one of the world’s fastest-growing entertainment and media (E&M) markets, according to PwC’s Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025–2029.
The report forecasts a robust compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 7.5% for India’s E&M sector, significantly outpacing the global average of 3.7%. This acceleration is primarily being fueled by internet advertising, which is projected to grow at 15.9% CAGR, making it a key pillar of India's digital media economy.
Riding on the back of widespread 5G rollout, increasing internet penetration and the rising consumption of short-form video and social media content, the Indian market is quickly becoming a major driver of global E&M revenue growth. This mirrors a broader trend where developing markets like Indonesia and China are emerging as growth engines, even as mature markets like the US grow at a steadier pace (3.8% CAGR).
Globally, the E&M industry is expected to grow from just under $3 trillion in 2024 to $3.5 trillion by 2029, with advertising emerging as the primary growth engine. Of the three core revenue categories, connectivity, advertising and consumer, advertising is poised to outpace the others, growing three times faster than consumer revenue at 6.1% CAGR.
Key advertising trends include the rapid expansion of retail media (15% CAGR), social and mobile video advertising (15%) and connected TV in-stream advertising (14%). With AI-powered hyper-personalisation and the proliferation of digital platforms, digital advertising formats are projected to constitute 80% of total ad revenues by 2029, up from 72% in 2024.
While connectivity will continue to dominate in absolute terms with revenues projected to hit $1.3 trillion in 2029, the sharp rise in digital advertising spend is steadily closing the gap. As AI reshapes everything from connected TV advertising to retail search and video gaming ads, India’s digital-first population is likely to be at the forefront of this transformation.
