Video games is no longer the biggest entertainment medium in the UK

For the first time in over ten years, video games is not the UK's biggest entertainment medium.

ERA, which is the UK trade body representing video, music and games retailers, says that revenue made from video games in the UK reached £4.74 billion, a rise of 2.9% over the year before. That includes sales of digital and physical video games, covering PC, mobile and consoles.

However, revenue from video-based content grew 10% to £4.9bn, driven by subscription services such as Netflix, Disney Plus, and Apple TV. Subscription revenue is worth 89% of the video market, ERA says.

In terms of individual products, Avatar: The Way of the Water was the best-selling video title of the year, with 560,000 units sold.

It's the first time since 2012 that video games wasn't the No.1 entertainment medium in the UK.

ERA's data is a mixture of figures suppled by GfK, Official Charts Company, Omdia and Futursource.

Music revenue reached £2.2bn in 2023, which is up 9.6% year-on-year and close to music's best-ever year (which was 2001).

Across all three entertainment mediums, 92% of sales where via digital downloading or streaming.

ERA also shared how the various markets are performing compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic. Video game revenue in the UK for 2023 vs 2019 is up 29.2%, video is up 88.3%, and music grew 38.8%.

For more details on the performance of the UK games market in 2023, click here.