By Sagar V. Mankar 
The UK entertainment industry has experienced some significant changes in 2024, according to a report released by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA). The report outlines the current state of various entertainment sectors, with a focus on the gaming industry, which has seen mixed results.
While the UK’s overall gaming market declined by 4.4%, dropping to £4.62 billion, it continues to hold a strong position, maintaining nearly twice the size of the music sector.
Mobile gaming proved to be a bright spot, growing by 2.6% to reach £1.59 billion, making it the largest segment of the UK gaming market. However, traditional gaming formats faced notable setbacks:
- Digital PC game sales declined by 5%.
- Digital console game sales dropped by 15%.
- Physical game sales experienced the steepest fall, plummeting by 35%.
In contrast, the gaming subscription model showed impressive growth, rising by 12% as consumers turned to services like Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation Plus, and Ubisoft Plus for cost-effective entertainment. This shift highlights the growing appeal of subscription-based models.
EA Sports FC 25 emerged as the best-selling game of the year, with 2.9 million units sold in the UK. Notably, 80% of these purchases were digital, reflecting the increasing preference for online formats.
ERA CEO Kim Bayley remains optimistic about the gaming industry’s future: “After the breakneck growth of recent years, it is no surprise that the games market has slowed down, but it remains a giant. Despite the attractions of digital business models to developers, we believe physical still has a role to play.”
Broader Entertainment Market
Overall, The UK’s entertainment market, encompassing music, video, streaming, and games, exceeded £12 billion in 2024.
Digital video services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Apple TV led the charge, generating £4.46 billion with an 8.3% growth rate. The overall video market reached £5 billion, marking a 6.9% increase.
Interestingly, physical music sales bucked the digital trend with a 6.2% increase, contributing to the music industry’s strongest performance since the CD era.
Source: ERA