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Ratings agency Crisil in its latest report has said that revenue of the Indian print media sector will grow between 13-15 per cent in FY24 on the back of  higher spending on advertisement (ad spend) by corporates in key sectors and an uptick in government ad spend in view of the upcoming state and general elections. The revenue of print media is expected to touch Rs 30,000 crore in FY24. 

According to the report, print media revenues had plummeted by 40 per cent in FY21 because of the pandemic, but bounced back later, growing at 25 per cent (FY22) and 15 per cent (FY23). It noted that a growing topline, along with a decline in newsprint prices, will lead to profitability of the sector, surging 10 percentage points to 14.5 per cent this fiscal. Amid concerns over reader preferences shifting to digital platforms, it said the sustained recovery indicates ‘enduring popularity of print media in India’ and pointed to advantages it possesses like low cover prices, convenience of home delivery, ability to provide original and credible content and sticky reading habits. 

The report further said subscription revenues are expected to grow by up to 7 per cent in FY24 on an increase in cover prices, on top of the 8-10 per cent growth in FY22 and FY23, and this points to a significant share of readers continuing to prefer physical newspapers. It added that subscription growth has a bearing on the profitability of print media companies because of increased requirement of newsprint, the key raw material for production of newspapers.