Entertainment and media enjoy spending boom

Spending on entertainment and media (E&M) is enjoying a boom thanks to a slight economic recovery as well as a multiplying array of digital devices that are becoming common for users, according to a new global outlook report from PwC.

In the Czech Republic over the next five years, PwC expects advertising spending by companies to increase at an annual compound rate of 4.7 percent. Internet advertising will increase at a rate of 9.9 percent in the same period, according to the report.

Consumer spending on entertainment and media grew in 2010 on the year, at a rate of 4.7 percent, compared with the global rate of 2.2 percent. While consumers have been enjoying an unprecedented level of free content via a variety of devices, that balance will shift as companies devise the best ways to monetize content, said PwC Czech Republic E&M Expert Olga Řehořková.

"This is a golden age for consumers, who have never had it so good when it comes to accessing premium content, often free, over multiple devices," she said. "E&M CEOs are having to adapt business models to capture the shifting nature of consumer demand. The bottom line is that in order to continue to create quality content, someone has to pay."

But convincing customers to pay is going to force companies to clearly define what consumers value - for example, being able to access information first or quicker than those using unpaid versions.

Advertisers must also create campaigns to connect businesses with clients through these platforms.

Claire Compton can be reached at
ccompton@praguepost.com