India is the envy of the world for having a free and vibrant media. It is also one of the few countries where newspapers have not only survived, but have actually grown in this century. Television has increased its footprint both in numbers and in reach. The New Media has been adding numbers at a breakneck pace, and the mobile media has started making its presence felt.
However, despite these impressive achievements Indian media is still to create a media powerhouse that can rank alongside the world’s biggest. No Indian media company figures in the latest Top Thirty Global Media Owners report released by ZenithOptimedia.
The leaders expectedly are digital giants with Google not only leading the pack, but also increasing its lead over others. The revenues of Alphabet, which is Google’s holding company, were $60 billion, which is 166% more than Walt Disney, which is its nearest rival.
Besides Google, there are four other digital companies that figure in the Top 30 report. These are Facebook, Baidu, Yahoo and Microsoft. Of these, Facebook has clocked the most impressive growth; its revenues spurted by 65% making it the fastest growing media company. China’s Baidu was the next fastest; its revenues grew by 52%.
What is even more revealing is how these top five digital companies have increased their stranglehold over the emerging media space. Together, these digital giants grossed US$88bn in media revenue, which is 34% of the combined revenues of the Top 30 media companies.
In contrast, traditional media companies continued to struggle with their stagnant revenues. Their forays into digital space have not met with the same kind of magical growth that pure plays achieved. In fact, the ZenithOptimedia report states that nearly half of the top 30 media owners have lost media revenues compared to last year. This is not a good sign for traditional media. Indian publishers, though doing well today, must pay heed. The tide is surely going to turn in favour of digital media at some point of time.
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