2025 Trends and Predictions in the Broadcast and Media Industry – CSI Magazine, December 2024
From interactive streaming and advertising to sports rights and bundling, here are some more industry predictions for 2025 and beyond.
In a recent presentation to a CTAM webinar, Omdia analyst Tim Westcott offered the following insight and predictions for the industry:
1. Revenue and content investment outlook
- Market Growth: The media and entertainment market is projected to grow to $1.1 trillion in 2025, with a nearly 5% increase. Online video (AVOD, FAST, social video) will dominate, worth $435 billion, with 62% from advertising. Traditional TV (free and pay) will decline but remain significant ($314 billion). Cinema will rebound to $47 billion.
- Subscriptions vs. Advertising: Online video subscriptions are plateauing at $154 billion, while advertising-supported video (AVOD, FAST) is growing to $267 billion, leading platforms to integrate ad-funded tiers.
2. Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) and streaming trends
- Studios are pressured to make DTC platforms profitable. Some, like Disney and Warner Bros., have started seeing profits.
- Netflix leads the market with $3 billion in quarterly operating profits, highlighting the gap between it and newer players.
- Programming spend is forecast to grow by 5% to $206 billion, led by streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon, and Apple, which continue to outpace traditional broadcasters.
3. Global production shift
- Content production is increasingly moving outside Hollywood, driven by:
- Cost efficiency (e.g., South Korea, Spain).
- Tax incentives (e.g., UK).
- Broader audience appeal (e.g., “Squid Game”).
- Netflix exemplifies this trend, commissioning 63% of its 2025 titles outside the US, with significant activity in the UK, South Korea, and Japan.
4. Consolidation and mergers
- US Market: Pressure mounts on companies like Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery to address declining linear TV revenue by focusing on DTC growth. Consolidation may involve rationalizing assets or spinning off divisions.
- European Market: Potential sales of ITV and Fremantle indicate restructuring. Mergers among large production groups may dominate, as acquisitions of smaller companies slow.
5. Growth in Connected TV and FAST
- Dominance of US: The US remains the largest market, with nearly 2,000 unique FAST channels. Revenue from FAST in the US will continue to lead globally, despite international growth.
- Key Players: Platforms like Pluto TV, Samsung TV Plus, and Rakuten expand their offerings, with studios and broadcasters entering FAST to diversify revenue streams.
- Content Trends: Crime, reality, kids, and game show genres thrive. Platforms are experimenting with formats to identify the most profitable content.
- Experimentation in FAST will persist, refining strategies to maximize audience engagement and profitability.
- Consumer electronics companies (e.g., Samsung) are expected to invest more in original and exclusive content, following examples like exclusive FAST channels on Samsung TV Plus.
6. AI integration
- AI use cases in TV production and distribution are growing, shifting the narrative away from concerns to practical applications like content personalization and cost-efficient production.
7. YouTube’s role
- YouTube dominates as a viewing platform globally and is a key content funding player. Over the last three years, it paid $70 billion to content creators—significantly more than Netflix’s $47 billion content spend in the same period.
The video streaming industry will continue consolidating, with cost efficiency remaining a top priority. Meanwhile, traditional players will persist in exploring new video formats like social media and short-form content.
Hybrid cloud models on the rise.
Sam Peterson, COO, Bitcentral:
The media industry’s cloud journey is also one to watch in 2025, with hybrid cloud setups combining the permanence and predictable cost of on-premise infrastructure with the cloud’s unmatched scalability. These hybrid models allow media companies to expand storage and operational capabilities while maintaining necessary control over sensitive data.
The recent advancements in cloud-native workflows cater to the industry’s demand for flexible, cost-effective solutions. While smaller players may opt for entirely cloud-based models, established broadcasters are looking to a hybrid approach to maintain existing assets while harnessing the cloud’s adaptability for remote work, rapid distribution, and complex collaborative workflows. This balanced cloud adoption is key for broadcasters to remain agile and scalable amid fluctuating content demands, making it a key trend on the rise.
Broadcasters need to be empowered to achieve high-quality output with a leaner tech stack, balancing operational costs with effective, long-term solutions. Prioritizing both efficiency and innovation is a difficult balance as both are important, but in the coming year, the need for more strategic monetization pushes efficiency slightly more into the driving seat.
Read more online: CSImagazine.com/csi/2025-trends-and-predictions