Revenue of online movie theaters in Russia in 2022 could decline by 46%

According to analyst firm J'son & Partners Consulting, the decline in revenues of online movie theaters in 2022 could be 46.3% to 53.2 billion rubles. If such a prediction comes true, the industry will not be able to return to the level of 2021, even by 2026.
Thus, in 2021 the revenue of online movie theaters in Russia reached a new record of 98.9 billion rubles, showing a growth of almost 60%. Losses are now being affected by the withdrawal of advertising brands from Russia and the limitation of licensing rights to films and series.
Advertising revenue alone is expected to drop by more than 60%. In addition, a pessimistic forecast is reinforced by the practice of pirate services among viewers. Representatives of the market expect that they will be able to avoid the mass departure of subscribers at the expense of domestic production, but how realistic this plan will be - it is not clear.
Cinemas in the country, it seems, did not help.Positive scenario implies a fall in revenues by 18% with a recovery to the previous level by 2024.
At the same time, it is expected that if sanctions are lifted, the return of foreign brands will accelerate. However, representatives of another service, Telecom Daily, believe that the most negative forecast implies a market decline of only 20%, and the situation will be corrected by the end of this year.