Italy‘s audiovisual sector saw its first decline in content investment since 2018 last year, the annual APA report revealed at the MIA Market today.
Overall, the audiovisual (read entertainment) sector generated €16.8B ($18.9B) in 2025, up 3.1% on the previous year, but inward investment in cinema, TV and on-demand fell to €2B, down 7.4%. Even within the overall number, the rate of growth had slowed significantly in 2024, which saw a 9% year-on-year bump.
Scripted TV and streaming productions were the most impacted, down €122M, with overall fiction production coming in at €740M, down 5.5% and below the average annual growth rate of 7.7% recorded between 2018 and 2025.
Italian producers association APA revealed the stats at Rome’s MIA Market, with drama, documentary, animation and film producers in attendance. The slowdown in investment was put down to government hesitation over changes to Italy’s domestic tax incentive for TV shows and films.
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“The main factor affecting the sector’s resilience is uncertainty surrounding the public funding framework, from the amount of available resources to eligibility criteria and application timelines,” the report’s authors said. “This situation hampers producers’ ability to plan ahead, increases financing costs and reduces margins, placing pressure on all companies, particularly smaller businesses, with consequences for liquidity and investment capacity.”
On the plus side, employment was up 3.3% at 128,336 people working in the Italian audiovisual sector, and online video driving the overall revenue figure. Free streaming services were up 15% and subscription platforms rising 10.3%. The APA is predicting 2026 figures will be broadly in line with these stats, and one striking figure showed that online video now accounts for 43% of the market, up from just 20% in 2020, and it is predicted to “surpass linear television in value” in “the short to medium term.”
In TV, most broadcasters are still favoring unscripted shows, which make up a total of 59% of independent productions. Streaming platforms have collectively increased their content by 51% and have seen total hours rise 30%, with factual the fast-growing segment as viewing hours increased by 36%.
“Established titles produced by independent companies continue to deliver value to broadcasters,” said APA President Chiara Sbarigia. “For example, Stasera Tutto è Possibile from Endemol Shine generates an additional 11.8 percentage points in prime-time audience share for Rai2.”
Original scripted productions have grown in terms on number of titles, accounting for 101 last year, up 9%. Streamers were behind 27 of them, with linear broadcasters accounting for the other 74.
Sandokan, the Lux Vide series for Rai, and La Preside, another Rai production this time from BiBiFilm, both attracted average audiences of more than 4.6 million viewers, APA noted, while in the digital space, Picomedia’s Rai series Mare Fuori (The Sea Beyond) exceeded 2.1 billion minutes viewed and Il Paradiso delle Signore (The Ladies’ Paradise) from Aurora TV reached 2 billion minutes. On Netflix, Il Mostro (The Apartment) recorded 9.7 million global views in its first week.
“Original Italian fiction also continues to showcase a diversity of locations and regions, thanks in part to the excellent work of our Film Commissions, in every respect, not least in promoting tourism,” said Sbarigia.
“In the face of AI and the spread of low-cost synthetic content, ‘Made by Humans’ is becoming a genuine premium of authenticity. Human creative and artistic contributions are set to become increasingly valuable, particularly in productions with strong editorial oversight.”
Microdramas were also assessed for the first time. “We wanted to analyse the phenomenon of vertical storytelling, which has reached a global market worth €14B in a very short time,” said Sbarigia. “The report highlights that, in Italy, ReelShort, DramaBox, NetShort and DramaWave are already among the country’s top 15 entertainment apps by consumer spending. Notably, the first original Italian production in this format has already been released: Tutto in una Notte [from Fascino PGT], comprising 54 episodes distributed through WittyTV and social media.”
The 8th Report on National Audiovisual Production by APA brought together research by CeRTA–Università Cattolica, eMedia, Fondazione Symbola and OpenEconomics. APA President Sbarigia presented it at the Palazzo Barberini earlier today.
MIA continues until Friday (October 23).
