The entire UK entertainment technology industry is valued at £1.28 billion in 2017/18 and is predicted to grow over the next five years, according to a new research report by PLASA.

The report is the most comprehensive study of the entire entertainment technology industry in many years and is now available to download on the PLASA website. It will be beneficial to many businesses who are looking to understand market sectors and growth opportunities for business planning and benchmarking performance.

Each market sector receives an investigation, drilling into recent performance, current challenges and future potential. The suppliers surveyed revealed that they were most positive about the future of architectural & commercial, concert & touring and themed attractions. Further down the scale were performing arts, DJ and studio sectors. The future of the industry is generally positive with half of those surveyed expecting the value of the industry to increase in the next five years.

According to the research all industry technologies have seen growth, particularly AV and audio which represent 38% and 27% of the market share respectively. Professional AV is currently valued at £490m and has an increasing presence in many sectors including architectural and retail. Professional audio is valued at £340m due to its usage in installations and sports among others.

Additionally, the report details how macro-environment factors such as GDP, tourism and consumer trends have affected the industry in recent years and cautions how these factors could continue to have an effect.

“It’s great to learn that the entertainment technology industry is in such good shape” says PLASA Managing Director Peter Heath. “And with the industry diversifying and adapting, it is clear that leading professionals from all sectors are more than capable of steering live entertainment technologies in the right direction for generations to come.”

PLASA plans to repeat the research every 12 months, enabling it to build up ever-more accurate trend information. The full report is available to download from the PLASA website, and is free of charge for PLASA members. Please visit www.plasa.org/industry-research for more information.