Spain’s Entertainment Market Continues To Reflect Gloomy Outlooks

May 10, 2010 - PRLog -- Spain music market has suffered a severe decline over the past few years as revenues dropped 43% from 2006 to 2009 according to Dataxis Intelligence’s market data. Although digital sales have been increasing, they still account for only 15% of the market. In a country where illegal file-sharing was more than double the average European rate in 2009, the rise in  digital sales did not prevent revenues to fall to €211 mln (-17% compared to 2008).  The recent launch of new business models based on subscription services could not reverse the slipping revenue trend.

The cinema market showed a relatively brighter picture in 2009 as revenues increased 4% in 2009 to €671 mln after they fell 4% in 2008 according to Dataxis Intelligence. Although Spanish movie theaters have seen a slight increase in the number of movie goers (109.99 mln, up 2%), the higher average ticket price of 3D movies helped achieve a greater revenue increase.

Pay TV revenues fell almost 10% in 2009 to €1.53 bn, down from €1.69 bn in 2008. As for the Spanish Free TV market, it was one of the most affected by recession in Europe. After 6 quarters of continuous decline, advertising revenues in traditional medias increased 0.6% to €1.198 bn during the first three months of 2010. TV, which accounts for the major portion of advertising sales, saw its revenues increase 1.9% reaching €584.7 mln during the first quarter of 2010. However, this uptrend should be seen in the context of severe declines in Q1 2009.

With regard to the DVD market, the outlooks remain gloomy. In March 2010, Michael Lynton, Chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment revealed that “Spain is on the brink of no longer being a viable home-entertainment market for [the company]“. Illegal downloading has severely undermined the growth of DVD sales, which fell nearly 30% in the last five years, after they reached a peak of €292.6 mln in 2004, according to Dataxis Intelligence’s market research service.

.

As the economic recession hit the entertainment industry very severely, and piracy continued to spread in the context of a weak legal framework, Spain’s entertainment and media market has suffered one of the highest declines in Europe over last years. Economic recovery,  new business models and strong legal defenses are now more than ever crucial to help sort out the industry.

www.dataxisnews.com

# # #

DATAXIS, is an international market research company that covers 4 play markets worldwide. Our online database contains detailed and up to date data on subscribers, revenues & ARPUs as well as annual forecasts on major operators and technology suppliers.