AI Adoption Projected to Boost Media Industry Revenue by 10%
Ernst & Young report highlights the financial benefits of AI integration in media and entertainment, forecasting significant revenue growth and cost reductions.
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A new report from Ernst & Young suggests that artificial intelligence could bring measurable financial benefits to the media and entertainment industry, predicting a 10% increase in revenue and a 15% decrease in operational costs for companies that adopt the technology strategically. With content demands growing across streaming, digital platforms, and global markets, the findings come at a moment when studios are seeking ways to scale output without scaling overhead.
The report highlights key areas where AI is already proving useful—from script breakdowns and pre-visualization to automated editing, dubbing, and localization. In post-production alone, automation could reduce project timelines by as much as 30%, freeing up budget and resources for creative development. Companies using AI-enhanced workflows for trailers, visual effects, and marketing assets reported turnaround times nearly twice as fast as traditional methods.
On the content side, AI is increasingly being used to analyze viewer behavior and inform programming decisions. Platforms equipped with AI recommendation engines see up to 25% longer user engagement sessions, and personalized content delivery has been shown to increase subscription retention rates by 8–12%. These insights can also guide advertising strategies, helping studios and streamers target audiences more efficiently and sell inventory at higher rates.
The financial modeling in the EY study was based on real-world case data across global media organizations. Mid-tier studios that implemented AI in pre-production saved an average of $500,000 per project in labor and coordination costs. For streaming services, personalized user experiences powered by AI led to revenue lifts of between 6% and 15%, depending on the market and maturity of the platform.
EY’s analysts noted that while the potential upside is significant, the adoption curve remains uneven. Larger companies tend to integrate AI more aggressively due to their infrastructure and data resources, while smaller studios often lack the in-house technical expertise. This gap may widen competitive disparities in the short term, unless industry-wide training and tool access become more equitable.
Still, the report also acknowledged ongoing risks. Issues around data security, synthetic content misuse, and potential job displacement remain top of mind for unions and industry watchdogs. More than 40% of surveyed media professionals expressed concerns that AI tools would devalue traditional creative labor if not implemented transparently. Several studios have already begun drafting internal policies to govern AI usage, particularly when it comes to writing, voice replication, and character design.
Despite the challenges, the momentum is hard to ignore. As generative and predictive AI continue to improve, and as regulatory frameworks begin to catch up, the role of artificial intelligence in content creation looks less like an experiment and more like a standard.
For media companies feeling the squeeze between rising production costs and pressure to deliver constant content, AI may not be a silver bullet—but according to the numbers, it’s at least a meaningful upgrade to the toolkit.