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…Streaming, gaming, Nollywood drive growth
Nigeria’s entertainment and media (E&M) industry is forecast to grow from $3.8 billion in 2025 to $5.3 billion in 2030, making it the fastest-growing of three African markets analysed by PricewaterhouseCoopers PwC.
The projection is contained in the PwC Africa Entertainment and Media Outlook 2026–2030, which puts Nigeria’s compound annual growth rate (CAGR) at 6.9 per cent.
Kenya is projected to grow by 5.0 per cent to $6.0 billion, while South Africa, the continent’s largest market, is forecast to expand by 3.2 per cent to $19.4 billion.
The forecast follows a slight dip in 2025, when Nigerian industry revenue stood at $3.78 billion, down from $3.84 billion in 2024, the report’s data tables show.
Connectivity, which covers mobile and fixed services, remains the sector’s biggest revenue pool.
Spending on it is projected to rise from $2.5 billion to $3.5 billion, or about 66 per cent of total industry revenue by 2030.
PwC said the pace of growth in streaming, gaming and other data-heavy services would depend on how available, affordable and reliable access becomes. 5G penetration is forecast to reach 35.3 per cent in Nigeria by 2030, against 51.6 per cent in Kenya and 86.8 per cent in South Africa.
Streaming is growing fast. Revenue from over-the-top (OTT) video is projected to rise from $31 million to $78 million at a CAGR of 20.4 per cent, which PwC described as the strongest OTT growth globally.
The report credited telecom partnerships that make access more affordable, and light-touch regulation that lets platforms build for local audiences.
Subscriptions are forecast at 1.6 million by 2030, with average revenue per subscription of $42, against a global average above $100. Traditional television remains larger, projected to grow from $257 million to $281 million, with OTT equal to 27.8 per cent of that by 2030.
Gaming is also expanding. Video game revenue is forecast to rise from $286 million to about $430 million, a CAGR of 8.5 per cent against 3.6 per cent globally, and to approach internet advertising revenue by 2030. Social and casual games made up 77 per cent of Nigeria’s gaming revenue in 2025, with smartphones the main route to players.
Internet advertising is projected to grow from $279 million to $439 million, a CAGR of 9.5 per cent. Retail paid search, forecast to grow at 17.2 per cent annually, is expected to overtake traditional paid search by 2028.
Cinema revenue is forecast to rise from $10 million to $29 million, the strongest growth of any category, though from a small base.
The report said Nollywood films accounted for almost 50 per cent of box office revenue in 2025. Music, radio and podcasts are projected to grow from $316 million to $438 million, a CAGR of 6.7 per cent, driven by the expanding local and global reach of Nigerian music.
PwC noted that, unlike South Africa, where value is shifting between segments, Nigeria is growing across several categories at once, which it said shows how much room remains in the market.
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