Africa Entertainment and Telecommunication Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Africa Entertainment and Telecommunication Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Africa entertainment and telecommunication market is expected to register a CAGR of 11.2% during the forecast period (2021 - 2026). With most African markets projected to grow online video revenues, the region’s digital consumption growth is among the highest in the world. A large youth population, fast-improving mobile connectivity, and a flood of new streaming platforms into the market will drive this growth. As a result, the digital’s share of the video revenue will increase, resulting in the growth of the entertainment market in Africa.

Key Highlights

• Also, smartphone penetration along with low data tariff, as well as investments in original and regional digital content, are some of the favorable factors for digital access and content supply, respectively, for driving the online consumption across the media & entertainment industry. For example, more than 290 million people in North Africa use mobile phones. The mobile market in the region generates $90 billion annually.
• However, Acceleration in network rollouts by mobile operators in Sub-Saharan Africa has been a vital driver of the reduction in the coverage gap. Infrastructure deployment in Sub-Saharan Africa increased 3G coverage from 63% in 2017 to 70% in 2018, extending access to more than 80 million people. 3.3 billion people live in areas covered by mobile broadband networks but do not use mobile internet – this ‘usage gap’ is more than four times greater than the coverage gap. Such factors might harm entertainment companies operating in the region.
• During the lockdown, the Entertainment industries are thriving in the digital space. Changes are implemented by film distributors to address the difficulty of releasing movies in theatres. One of the solutions is to use transactional video-on-demand platforms for new releases. Similarly, the consumption of music, video, and other forms of entertainment has grown during the time of lockdown and may change the way of operating permanently. Permanently.
• On the other hand, Wuhan in China is the largest producer of optical fiber and cable in the world. And the recent supply-chain disruption could severely hamper the expansion activities in this region. Fiber optic cable is a necessary component of high-speed broadband, which is essential for 4IR technology and implementation.

Key Market TrendsData Access and Availability of Internet Access to Drive the Growth

• African telecommunications operators experienced positive, if muted, growth since 2018 as total subscriptions, device ownership, internet penetration, and data usage continue to increase. The increased emphasis on flexibility, freedom, and convenience in when, where, and how they interact with their preferred content is driving the growth of the entertainment and telecommunication industry in the region.
• The increased availability of low-cost smartphones and improving coverage of 3G and 4G networks are driving the demand for data connectivity and the take-up of digital services. Investment in fixed wireless and fiber technologies will also help to drive the adoption of fixed broadband in the region. The increasing rate of development in the telecom infrastructure will create more opportunities for the entertainment industry in terms of better reach and new customer acquisitions.
• With the emergence of digital behavior, subscription models are playing a primary role in the monetization of the digital platform with evolving technologies, thereby creating opportunities for companies in the media and entertainment industry to achieve greater operational efficiencies.
• Local companies, foreign investors, and global players have all made a significant investment in the continent. Domestic infrastructure sharing, cross border, and in-country mergers, and governments responding to the opportunity to regulate and to auction spectrum and licenses are some of the major factors playing a role in the growth of the telecommunication and entertainment market in the region.

Data Consumed through Smartphone Segment is Expected to Have Major Market Share

• Africa is the only region in the world where the youth population is increasing. By 2050 Africa's young people, i.e., those aged between 0 and 24 years old, will increase by nearly 50 percent. Africa will have the most significant number of young people. Africa's youth are critical to the continent's future when it comes to the consumption of entertainment and telecommunication services as a whole. Smartphones are becoming the most convenient devices to access various types of entertainment as the number of people owning a smartphone is increasing at a rapid pace.
• The emergence of social media is disrupting the industry and players are switching from traditional towards digital platforms, these changes are increasing their ads spend on the digital media due to which the sector is significantly benefitting from digital tools and platforms. Such shifts are facilitating efficient production, distribution, and consumption of content through mobile phones revolutionizing market growth.
• However, additional taxes imposed on internet users across Africa for social media use, IP communication, or just general data use and the turf between OTT providers and mobile operators over taxes and regulations resulting in unfair competition may negatively impact the entertainment and telecommunication industry in the future.

Competitive Landscape

The media & entertainment market landscape is highly competitive and consists of some of the prominent players leading across the industry. In terms of market share, some of the major players currently dominate the market. However, with the advancement in the emerging network technology (5G) across the OTT services, new players are increasing their market presence thereby expanding their business footprint across the region.

• In January 2020, Sony Music Entertainment (SME) announced it is more directly connecting its operations in Asia and the Middle East to the Company’s leadership team and business strategy through a new reporting structure. Moving forward, there will be new hubs throughout Asia and the Middle East that will report to Sony Music’s New York-based corporate leadership.
• In February 2020, Netflix launched its first original series made in Africa. It is a spy story called “Queen Sono” starring South African actress Pearl Thusi. Netflix offers storytellers in Africa is an opportunity to produce better-quality dramas.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
• 3 months of analyst support

Companies Mentioned
 
Gamesole
Kuluya
Chopup
Kucheza
Kagiso Interactive
Nyamakop
Celestial Games
Clockwork Acorn
Atos
Arista Networks
Broadcom Inc.
Cisco Systems
Dell Technologies
Hewlett Packard Enterprise
Huawei
IBM Corporation
NetApp
Arup Group
Callaghan Engineering
Etix Everywhere
Lupp Group
ABB
Eaton Corporation

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