MAM
Global ad spend to increase by 4.9% to $465.5 bn in 2012
MUMBAI: Following 3.8 per cent growth in 2011, global ad spend is expected to grow by 4.9 per cent in 2012 to $465.5 billion, according to the latest forecast from Strategy Analytics.
Although total US advertising spending is expected to increase by less than the global rate, at 2.7 per cent this year to $152.1 billion, it is a significant improvement on the 0.6 per cent growth in 2011. The US also underperforms Europe as a whole, which is expected to grow by 3.7 per cent to $136.3 billion in 2012.
Strategy Analytics director of digital media strategies Ed Barton explains, “Major global-impact events led by the Olympics, the US Presidential Elections and the European Football Championships, as well as Japan’s continuing recovery from the earthquake, combine to paint a brighter picture globally in 2012 for advertising spending overall. Furthermore, we expect that total ad spend will surpass half a trillion ($500bn) dollars in 2014.”
Global advertising by media type: Looking at spend by media type reveals that global TV advertising is expected to grow by five per cent in 2012 to $188.5 billion, equivalent to 40 per cent of all global spending.
Global print advertising is expected to grow by half a per cent, accounting for a 26.4 per cent share. Other traditional formats including cinema and radio will grow by approximately four per cent.
In contrast, global online advertising is expected to grow 12.8 per cent to $83.2bn in 2012, accounting for 18 per cent of global ad spending.
Barton says, “Online advertising will continue along its growth trajectory fuelled by strong growth in emerging markets and increased spending volumes on social networking and online video advertising.”
US/Europe advertising by media type: It is a similar picture in the US with online advertising leading the way. Online is expected to grow by 6.7 per cent this year to $27.4 billion compared to 3.7 per cent for TV and 2.9 per cent for other traditional formats. Print is expected to decline by 1.5 per cent.
In comparison, online advertising across Europe is expected to grow by 11.7 per cent this year compared to 3.4 per cent for TV and 2.4 per cent for ‘other traditional’ advertising. Print is expected to decline by 0.1 per cent.
Barton notes, “The US continues to be a leader in terms of the share of revenue generated by TV advertising – its share in the US this year will be approximately 41 per cent compared to 35 per cent in Europe and 24 per cent in the UK. In contrast, Internet advertising tends to have a smaller share of spending than in other markets. However, the share of advertising dollars allocated to the Internet continues to grow and is projected to overtake print advertising in the US in 2016 – a year ahead of when this is expected to happen for the total global market.”
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
