Chinese cinema revenues to hit US$15.5b by 2023

The segment is tipped to grow at a CAGR of 9.4% over the next five years.

China’s cinema segment could grow by 9.1% as box office revenue is expected to hit US$9.9b, data from PwC’s Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2019-2023 revealed.

Moreover, the segment is tipped to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.4%, with revenue to reach US$15.5b by 2023.

Benefitting from box office growth and rising ticket prices, China led the global market in terms of admissions and cinema visits in 2015. In 2016, the country had the highest number of screens in the world. The number of screens is expected to rise at a CAGR of 4.65% and reach 75,406 by 2023.

PwC also projects the national average for tickets to grow from US$5.1 per ticket in 2018 to US$5.7 per ticket by 2023. Online movie ticket purchases comprised 84.5% of the sales revenue in 2018.

More than 700 movies were shown domestically from 2018 to May 2019, with 45 movies raking in over $72.66m (RMB500m) each. The films shown accounted for 72% of total box office revenue. Amongst the 45 films shown, 27 were produced domestically and comprised 45% of total box office revenue, whilst 18 foreign films accounted for only 27%.

"The competitiveness of Chinese films has enhanced, and the new generation of directors are becoming the backbone of the market. ‘Content is king' again,” says Frank Lin, PwC China entertainment and media partner.

Meanwhile, the intense competition amongst cinemas is reflected in the decline of new cinemas in 2018 whilst also experiencing greater closures. The number of cinemas that closed and opened in 2017 and 2018 has also caused a market reshuffling of cinema operators, PwC said.

When China celebrates its 70th National Day, films with related nationalistic themes are predicted to prove popular in box office sales and domestic films will draw more attention than ever, PwC added. 

Photo by Huandy618 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0