Date:23/11/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/11/23/stories/2007112355010900.htm

National

Media industry poised for big growth

Special Correspondent

PANAJI: The Indian media and entertainment industry is poised to witness an unprecedented growth, from the existing size of $ 11 billion (Rs. 450 billion) at a compounded annual growth rate of 18 per cent to reach $ 25 billion (Rs. 1 trillion) by 2011.

This projection is part of a report on the media and entertainment sector released here by Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat at a two-day conference on the theme of “India - The Big Picture” organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on the eve of the 38th International Film Festival of India (IFFI-2007) on Thursday.

The report “the new economics of Indian film industry: creativity and transformation” has been prepared by CCI-A.T. Kearney. Earlier, Mr. Kamat inaugurated the conference ‘Bridging Business and Creativity” where different stakeholders of the entertainment industry, financiers and government agencies are participating.

Mr. Bobby Bedi, chairman, CII National Films Committee, Ms. Asha Swarup, Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Goa Chief Secretary J.P. Singh, and Ms. Neelam Kapoor, Director Film Festivals, were present.

Veteran film historian B. D. Garga was felicitated for his contribution to the industry by the Chief Minister.

In its recommendations, the report has emphasised the need for a dedicated regulator to monitor the way the industry structure pans out. Stating that currently the role of the independent regulator is restricted to only the sub-segments of TV and radio, the report has said that considering the sea-change expected to come up for the industry, there are multiple areas where the need for regulator arises, like, controlling piracy, laws on intellectual property rights protection, developing India as a talent hub, promoting Indian films globally, promoting diversity of ownership and preventing restrictive trade practices.

The report has suggested that the Government should create opportunities to nurture talent by increasing awareness on the potential career opportunities and offering courses on various aspects of the creative industry.

The report has demanded a unified tax regime for the entire country and a trade-off analysis at the industry level to reduce the entertainment tax.