Film and Music Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery to 2030

Major companies in the film and music market include Time Warner; Sony; CBS Corporation; Walt Disney and Twenty First Century Fox.

The global film and music market is expected to grow from $289.13 billion in 2020 to $308.97 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.9%. The growth is mainly due to the companies rearranging their operations and recovering from the COVID-19 impact, which had earlier led to restrictive containment measures involving social distancing, remote working, and the closure of commercial activities that resulted in operational challenges. The market is expected to reach $392.34 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 6%.

The film and music market consists of the revenues from the production and/or distribution of motion pictures, videos, television programs, or commercials, from the exhibition of motion pictures or from the provision of postproduction and related services or of the production and distribution of musical recordings, from publishing music, or from providing sound recording and related services earned by entities (organizations, sole traders and partnerships) that are in the film and music industry. The film and music market is segmented into music recording and film and video.

North America was the largest region in the global film and music market, accounting for 39% of the market in 2020. Western Europe was the second largest region accounting for 34% of the global film and music market. Africa was the smallest region in the global film and music market.

Film and music production companies are increasingly adopting motion capture technology to reduce costs associated with key frame-based animations. Motion capture is the process of recording a live motion event and translating it into actionable data that allows a 3D recreation of the performance. To achieve these, performers need to wear reflective markers all over their body which are then interpreted by a computer and turned into digital 3D models. Through this technology real time results are achieved faster and it also reduces the cost of key-frame animation. Some recent box-office blockbusters which incorporated motion capture technology include Avengers, Captain America, Beauty and the Beast, Guardians, Iron Man and others.

The outbreak of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has acted as a significant restraint on some of the film and music markets in 2020 as businesses were disrupted due to lockdowns imposed by governments globally. COVID 19 is an infectious disease with flu-like symptoms including fever, cough, and difficulty in breathing. The virus was first identified in 2019 in Wuhan, Hubei province of the People’s Republic of China and spread globally including Western Europe, North America and Asia. Steps by national governments to contain the transmission have resulted in a decline in economic activity and restricted movement of goods and services with countries entering a state of 'lock down'. The outbreak is expected to continue to have a negative impact on businesses throughout 2020 and into 2021. However, many media markets have been unaffected or benefited from this as they transmit their content remotely through digital channels. It is expected that the film and music market will recover from the shock across the forecast period as it is a 'black swan' event and not related to ongoing or fundamental weaknesses in the market or the global economy.

The penetration of newer distribution platforms like internet protocol television (IPTV) and Direct-to-home (DTH) and online platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo is driving the growth of the film and music market. Digitization of TV platforms is paving the way for better sound and picture quality for viewers and increased revenues for stakeholders in the value chain. This is also resulting in more bandwidth to broadcasters to provide value added services, thereby boosting revenues. Digital production techniques in films has reduced processing and storage costs. Digital distribution and exhibition have led to enhanced picture quality and shortened release window. These factors are expected to positively impact the growth of the market during the forecast period.