Entertainment should be key driver for the U.S.-India Economic Dialogue
By siliconindia   |   Sunday, 07 November 2010, 22:02 IST
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Washington: The Alliance for U.S.-India Business (AUSIB) encourages the U.S. Administration to make the entertainment industry central to the discussion on ways that U.S. and India can build business and people-to-people partnerships. President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan have made clear that both countries are meeting to discuss an agenda which includes developing stronger economic ties between the two nations. AUSIB President, Sanjay Puri said, "People in the entertainment industry have been paying attention to what is happening in the Indian entertainment industry for some time. Hollywood blockbusters are seeing great returns in India. Indian entrepreneurs and movie producers are investing in Hollywood businesses and talent. The Indian movie industry releases nearly 1,000 films a year and Hollywood is the leader in global entertainment revenues. There is a tremendous amount of potential for the two to work together. This has not only economic potential but also potential for increased cross-cultural understanding between the two biggest democracies. AUSIB has often helped executives and artists come together from both countries." Dolly Kapoor, Director of Entertainment & Media for AUSIB, added her thoughts, "This summit will give the Indian film industry a chance to position itself as a superior global entertainment provider." Kapoor went on to say, "Since the Indian government has allocated $50 million for various development projects for the film industry, Hollywood now has an economic option in India, with its unexplored locales and low-cost technological global solutions, backed by active government support. In recent years, Bollywood has attracted a significant amount of interest from Hollywood producers and directors. The level of interest is only growing as more industry leaders realize that Bollywood is a haven for affordable, spectacular productions." The Indian media and entertainment industry stood at US$ 12.9 billion in 2009 registering a 1.4% growth last year, according to a joint report by KPMG and an industry chamber. Over the next five years, the industry is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13 per cent to reach the size of US$ 24.04 billion by 2014. The Indian film industry is projected to grow at a CAGR of 9% to touch an estimated amount of US$ 3.02 billion over the next five years. Growth drivers for the sector would include expansion of factors like an increase in the number of multiplex screens, digital screens facilitating wider releases, higher cable and satellite revenues, improving collections from the overseas markets and supplementary revenue streams like DTH, digital downloads, etc, which are expected to emerge in future.

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