Entertainment figures.. a tributary to the vision industry

Today, entertainment is one of the most important forms of human activity that provides well-being, and it is receiving increasing attention in all countries of the world. The entertainment industry is no longer a marginal industry, but rather has become a main focus, due to the distinctive support it provides for GDP and employment. It is a group that represents multiple sub-industries such as sports, television, amusement parks, games, the arts in all its beautiful forms, children’s toys, movies, and the world of digital games. Even restaurants and shopping have become entertainment today, and humans are still able to create other forms of exploitation during their spare time. Entertainment is an industry marked by constant transformation, endless innovation and creativity. Global statistics indicate that the value of the media and entertainment market reached $2.34 trillion in 2021, achieving a growth of 10.4 percent compared to 2020, and is expected to reach $2.93 trillion by the end of 2026.
In this regard, Saudi Arabia is proceeding at a successful and advanced pace in supporting the entertainment industry, in order to achieve the well-being of society and enhance the economy, as this sector represents a human need and a social requirement, in addition to being an important economic activity and a source of income for countries and the private sector, and a main engine for other economic activities. The Kingdom’s Vision 2030 has paid attention to this sector, by working to support and enhance it, and encourage the private sector to make its contributions to it. It is expected that the contribution of the entertainment sector, along with its related entities, by 2030 will reach 4.2 percent of the GDP. The entertainment sector comes as one of the most important transformations that Saudi society is going through, socially, culturally and economically, with the acceleration of growth witnessed by the sector and the abundance and momentum of seasons and events, led by the “Riyadh Season”, which came as a mixture of art, music, heritage, culture, tourism, diversity, coexistence and fun, to go beyond the borders of the country, attracting Visitors from neighboring countries, opening new horizons for all visitors and workers in this season, which is fully run by national cadres.
Entertainment has been promoted as part of the Kingdom’s vision, within the axis of the concept of quality of life, which receives wide attention by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Entertainment Authority referred to this generous support by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Prince Muhammad bin Salman, Crown Prince, for this sector, and it is expected that the total spending on entertainment in the country will reach about 36 billion dollars, equivalent to 135 billion SAR by 2030, and it is expected to provide more than 224 thousand direct and indirect jobs. Through entertainment, the Authority seeks to open new horizons for the quality of life that directly affect citizens, such as sports, culture, heritage, arts, entertainment, recreation, and the like, and to diversify recreational opportunities. And residents, and in all regions of Saudi Arabia. Since its inception, the authority has been able to leapfrog the entertainment industry in an unprecedented manner.
It is worth noting that the General Entertainment Authority has issued an integrated guide for investors in this important sector, in a way that facilitates the investor’s journey and provides a definition of entertainment and support activities, and the requirements for obtaining the appropriate license to apply for it electronically, as well as the controls for entertainment and support activities that the licensee – the investor – must abide by. , with the aim of regulating, controlling and supervising the entertainment sector, in a way that helps the investor understand the types of licenses for entertainment activities, and also contributes to providing investment and financing solutions packages, and as a result of all these huge efforts, the General Entertainment Authority announced that the activities it held from 2019 until the first quarter of the year The current number of events has reached 8,732, between events and entertainment shows, and the number of event days has reached more than 76,000 days, including more than 1,381 concerts, and has received more than 120 million visitors, which is a record number in this vital sector. It also issued 11.1 thousand A license for various entertainment and support activities, after the launch of the new licensing system in 2019 for nine entertainment and support activities, while 470 entertainment destinations were licensed in more than 42 cities and governorates. This is in addition to licensing more than 3,738 establishments in the fields of entertainment and support activities, as well as licensing more than 1,402 restaurants in 50 cities and governorates in 50 cities and governorates, as well as licensing more than 82 plays with approximately 350 performances. Theatrically, more than 6,610 talents of performers have been enabled to participate in events and live performances in restaurants and cafes, more than 12 poetry evenings have been held, and more than five free wrestling shows (WWE) have been organized.
With these distinguished figures and statistics and great diversity, and in contrast to what the entertainment sector contributes to in terms of employment, attracting investments and supporting opportunities to diversify the national economy, the entertainment industry has provided many citizens and residents with opportunities to attend these events inside the Kingdom, without incurring the trouble of traveling, and what the “Riyadh Season” witnessed Diversity of activities and support for creativity, creators and talented people. The results achieved so far and in record time indicate that entertainment will be one of the pillars of economic diversification and one of the most important industries that attract foreign investments in the Kingdom, and it has a bright future in achieving distinguished numbers. There is no doubt that the entertainment sector – after developments and innovations in recent years – is one of the important economic tributaries with its rapidly growing contributions to the GDP.