Market grows by over £90 million - according to PSA Annual Market Review

• PSA publishes Annual Market Review
• Market grew by £90 million  
• Half of UK adult population have used a phone-paid service over the last year, and Review anticipates industry consolidating gains in current financial year
• Significant growth driven by Operator Billing, Premium SMS and charity text donations

The Phone-paid Services Authority (PSA) has published its Annual Market Review (AMR) for the 2018/19 financial year.

The Review, conducted by Analysys Mason, includes several important findings, including significant growth of over £90 million in the phone-paid services market. It also estimates that 58% of adults used a phone-paid service at least once last year.

The UK phone-paid services market was valued at £630.9 million, a significant increase on 2017/18 when it was valued at £540.5 million.

The growth within the market has been driven by Operator Billing, accounting for £275.7 million of market value. This came primarily from providers of music streaming, app store purchases, gaming and other entertainment services. Much of the growth was driven by large blue-chip brands entering the market.

Premium SMS (PSMS) remains an important part of the market, with revenues growing up to £174.4 million. This came mostly from broadcast competitions. These services alone accounted for over £80 million of consumer spend.

Donations to charity by text also grew from £37.5 to £49.6 million. This was helped by two major charity telethons being held: Children in Need and Red Nose Day.

It is estimated that over 25% of the donations made to major charity telethons were made by text.

The Review predicts that the market will consolidate these gains in 2019/20, despite the steep and ongoing decline in revenues from voice-based services such as directory enquiries.

Read the Annual Market Review 2018/19 in full.