Ireland’s Entertainment & Media Outlook 2023–2027

The three key drivers for entertainment and media growth in Ireland are:

1. Internet access: revenues to reach €2.2bn‎ by 2027

Ireland’s internet access market will show strong growth across the forecast period, with revenues growing at 6.5% CAGR from €1.6bn‎ to €2.2bn‎ between 2022 and 2027. Growth will be fuelled by the Irish mobile market, which will hit a tipping point in 2024 when annual revenues will overtake the broadband sector for the first time.

The mobile internet access market will grow at a strong 8.7% CAGR, from €788m‎ in 2022 to €1.2bn‎ in 2027. The broadband internet access market will grow at a much slower pace of 4.3% CAGR—albeit still well ahead of the global average of 2.3%—from €‎836m in 2022 to €1bn‎ in 2027.

2. Mobile internet advertising: revenues to reach €‎455m by 2027

Irish total revenues for internet advertising will grow at a rate of 3.7% CAGR to reach €819m‎ by 2027. This is below the global average of 6.5% due to the maturity of the Irish market. Most of the growth in Ireland will be driven by the mobile sector, where a 5.2% CAGR will push revenue to €‎455m over the forecast period.

By 2027, mobile internet advertising revenue is expected to account for 56% of the total Irish internet advertising market. The fastest-growing category will be video display, while paid search will be the slowest.

3. Ireland’s video-on-demand market expects growth of 8.9% CAGR to produce revenues of €‎433m in 2027

Ireland’s video-on-demand market, which comprises both subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) and transactional video-on demand (TVOD), achieved record growth in recent years as households spent more time indoors seeking home entertainment during the COVID-19 lockdowns. The market is set to expand further at 8.9% CAGR to reach €‎433m by 2027. Subscription platforms will dominate over 97% of total video-on-demand revenue. This is due to the prevalence of SVOD services.

The SVOD sector, which has led the streaming boom over the past decade, will continue to account for the biggest proportion of domestic video-on-demand revenue by the end of the forecast period. The Irish SVOD market will reach €422m in 2027. However, as the new normal of slower subscriber additions affects the sector, fuelled by a consumer spending slowdown, platform maturity and market penetration saturation, we expect SVOD growth to fall globally from 19% in 2022 to less than 4.4% in 2027.

Other areas of interest for Ireland

1. Cinema: Ireland remains a hub for foreign filmmakers

With its Section 481 tax credit incentive, Ireland remains a hub for foreign filmmakers and has benefitted from the recent global production boom. Local screen agency, Screen Ireland, reported that filmed entertainment generated €500m in inward investment in 2021. Total Irish cinema revenue is set to reach €161m by 2027, significantly up on the 2019 pre-pandemic figure of €124m.

2. Music: the Irish music and radio market has increased by €93m, up 32% from 2021–2022

Ireland’s music and radio market generated €379m in 2022, an increase of 32% from €286m in 2021. It is forecast to rise at 3.6% CAGR to reach €453m by 2027. The largest segment of the Irish music and radio market is live music, which accounted for 44% of market value in 2022—a growth rate of 107% since 2021 when revenues from live music were only starting to recover post-pandemic. Though this growth rate is expected to drop significantly, live music revenues in Ireland are expected to continue to grow at 6.1% CAGR, which is above the global rate of 4.6%.

3. Video games: the social and casual gaming sector will overtake traditional gaming as Ireland’s primary source of video game revenue

Total video games revenue in Ireland is expected to reach €526m by 2027, increasing at 3.3% CAGR.

Traditional gaming, which comprises revenues associated with playing games on PCs and game consoles, is currently the predominant sector in Ireland’s video games market, accounting for €234m in revenue in 2022. However, the longer-term picture is one of more consistent shrinkage, driven by a sharp decline in sales of physical console games, resulting in an overall decrease of -0.3% CAGR in the forecast period.

After several years of rapid growth, Ireland’s social and casual gaming sector experienced a slower year in 2022, with year-on-year growth of 0.5% bringing revenue of €192m. Yet, the sector is expected to revert to more rapid growth in the coming years with an increase of 7.0% CAGR, reaching €267m by 2027 and overtaking traditional gaming as Ireland’s primary source of video games revenue. Social/casual gaming revenues include in-app consumer spending on tablets and smartphones, revenue generated from in-app advertisements and browser games aimed at a casual audience.

4. Newspapers and consumer magazines: revenues to fall 5.3% and 3.1% per annum to 2027, respectively 

The Irish newspaper market was worth €379m in 2022 and will fall to €288m in 2027. Digital revenue will rise from €88m to €113m over the next five years but will not outweigh the decline in print from €291m to €175m over the forecast period. Digital revenue will increase at 5.2% CAGR over the five-year forecast period.

Consumer magazine revenue in Ireland is forecast to fall from €40m to €34m in 2027. There will be declines across the board, with digital falling to €16m and print contracting to €18m between 2022 and 2027. The print sector will be weighed down by the rising costs of paper and the production of physical magazines.

5. Adoption of the metaverse continues to grow

PwC’s 2023 Consumer Insights Survey highlights that the Metaverse gained popularity in recent years, although Ireland is playing catch-up with its global counterparts. For example, 23% of Irish consumers have interacted with the metaverse (Global: 34%), up from 19% in the previous survey in late 2022. Just 7% of Irish consumers have used a virtual reality headset to play games (Global: 11%), but that figure is up from 4% in the previous survey.

6. Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) remains particularly disruptive

Developments in GenAI will be particularly disruptive to the entertainment and media industry, particularly in the internet advertising space. Big tech companies have announced that they will use GenAI to create adverts and produce advertising campaigns similar to those made by marketers using the technology in the near future. These companies must play a role in safeguarding information and ensuring that consumers’ privacy rights are upheld.

The EU AI Act is currently under examination by the European Data Protection Board and will soon come into effect. As organisations assess their approach to GenAI, they will need to identify and adhere to responsible AI principles by addressing critical risks related to transparency, privacy and consent.

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