The Irish entertainment and media industry is expected to grow by 5.6 per cent a year over the next five years as the increased take-up of broadband encourages people to download music and play video games.

According to a report released yesterday by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the value of the Irish market is forecast to rise to $3.3 billion (€2.75 billion) by 2009, from $2.5 billion last year. Globally, the market is expected to increase at the rate of 7.3 per cent a year, reaching $1.8 trillion in 2009, driven primarily by expansion in the Asia-Pacific region.

"The healthy growth in the Irish market can be attributed to the strong take-up of broadband as prices for the service come down, and an increased tendency to play video games," said Sinéad Parker, director of Irish entertainment and media at PwC.

Currently, there are about 174,000 broadband users in Ireland, a number PwC is forecasting will grow to more than 700,000 by 2009. Spending on internet subscriptions is forecast to grow by 25 per cent this year and 29 per cent next year. The compound annual growth rate for the next five years is forecast to be 18 per cent, reaching $269 million by 2009, according to the report.

PwC is also predicting that traditional markets such as television will exhibit stronger growth rates in the future due to their revitalisation from new technologies and distribution channels. The sector, which grew by 5.3 per cent in 2003, is forecast to grow at an annual compound rate of 6.1 per cent over the next five years, reaching $987 million by 2009.

"The trends in Ireland mirror those around the world," said Ms Parker. "The only difference is that we have to catch up as far as broadband take-up goes."

While the US is forecast to remain the largest entertainment and media market globally, it is projected to be the slowest-growing of the five regions analysed at 5.6 per cent compound annual growth. This compares with 25.2 per cent in China.

Global advertising spending is forecast to increase by 5.9 per cent annually with internet advertising playing the largest part in this growth at 15.8 per cent.