This report examines the Irish market for out-of-home entertainment. As defined below, it will concentrate on the "evening out" and looks at how adults seek to utilise their leisure time between activities such as going to pubs/bars, restaurants, cinema/theatre and watching sport. Factors which are responsible for driving or curtailing growth of this sector will be considered, the supply structure examined and, in The Consumer section, those activities regularly participated in will be compared and contrasted with a "wish list" showing which activities consumers would like to do more often, if given the opportunity.

Other reports of relevance include:

- The Eating Out Market, Irish Series, December 1999

- In-home Entertainment, Irish Series, October 1999

- Entertaining the Under 16s, Leisure Intelligence, September 1999

- Health and Fitness Facilities, Irish Series, September 1999

- Irish Lifestyles, Special Report, 1999.

Definitions and coverage

"Entertainment"

For the analysis of consumer markets, entertainment is normally defined as part of the leisure market and can cover both products (eg televisions, hi-fi) and services (cinemas, bingo etc).

In this report, the term entertainment will be used exclusively for services outside the home, although the importance of in-home entertainment such as television, reading and music must be acknowledged.

In order to narrow the focus to a reasonable number of activities for a report of this scope, this title will concentrate on those activities primarily associated with the "evening out". Day-time activities, such as day-trips away from home and children's activities, such as to theme parks, are generally excluded.

This definition, guided by Mintel's consumer research, means that the following activities, or entertainment venues, are most appropriate for coverage in this report:

- Pubs and bars which provide live entertainment. The pub occupies a central position in Irish culture and leisure, and cannot be ignored, although additional detail on the pub sector can be found in The Eating Out Market, Irish Series, December 1999. The use of restaurants for evening meals is also quantified in the consumer research (see The Consumer section).

- Cinema: this is easily the leading form of commercial entertainment venue outside the home. Ireland has followed the global trend towards "multiplexes" - cinema complexes offering more than two "screens" (ie separate auditoria).

- Live sport: this segments into spectator sports (eg attendances at football matches) and watching live sport broadcasts in a pub or bar.

- Nightclubs and other dancing: important in the youth market.

- Concerts and theatre: often sharing the same venues.

- Other activities, including bingo, social clubs and non-commercial evenings out (eg at churches, schools, or evening classes).

There is also a broad division in this market between the commercial and non-commercial art forms, often heavily subsidised. The former are of primary concern in this market research series, but the latter, grouped as "the arts", are also given some coverage.

Geographical, national and regional definitions

The political relationships between the states of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland are complex, and it is essential to define clearly, from the outset, the use of the terms "Ireland", "Irish" and "British":

- Ireland: in this report, Ireland denotes the whole of the island of Ireland, which comprises the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland; the latter being part of the United Kingdom of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (or simply the UK).

- the Republic of Ireland: or the Irish Republic, (or Eire, in Irish Gaelic), is referred to in the abbreviated form of RoI, or "the Republic".

- Northern Ireland: consists of the six counties of Derry, Tyrone, Down, Antrim, Fermanagh and Armagh and is part of the UK.

- the term "British" is avoided in the report, in order to avoid either geographical or political confusion. In strict geographical terminology, Ireland is part of the British Isles, although the political classification of "Great Britain" (GB) only comprises England, Scotland and Wales (not Northern Ireland).

The Good Friday Agreement was endorsed by a referendum in Northern Ireland in 1998. In November 1999, an agreement was reached to create a devolved government for Northern Ireland, with representation for all major political parties. On 2 December 1999, the Northern Ireland Assembly was established.

Methodology and acknowledgements

The desk research methods used for this report include the acquisition of relevant statistics and the analysis of trade press news and articles. Official sources used include the Central Statistical Office in the Republic of Ireland and the Office for National Statistics for Northern Ireland.

Primary, field research, exclusively for this report, was conducted by Ulster Marketing Surveys with a demographically representative sample of consumers in the Republic and Northern Ireland.

Values throughout this report are expressed either in Irish Pounds (IR£), in Sterling (£) or in euros (€).

All values are expressed at retail selling prices unless otherwise stated.

Abbreviations

€	euro
BMRB	British Market Research Bureau
CAVIAR	Cinema and Video Audience Research
CD	Compact Disc
CSO	Central Statistical Office (Republic of Ireland)
DCMS	Department for Culture, Media and Sport (UK)
DAHGI	Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands (RoI)
DTSR	Department for Tourism, Sport and Recreation (RoI)
DVD	Digital Versatile Disc
EMU	Economic Monetary Union
ESRI	Economic and Social Research Institute
EU	European Union
GDP	Gross domestic product
NI	Northern Ireland
ONS	Office for National Statistics (UK)
PDI	Personal Disposable Income
RoI	Republic of Ireland
rsp	retail selling price
SPSS	Statistical Package for the Social Sciences
TGI	Target Group Index. For further details concerning this information, including data regarding readership patterns of users/purchasers and details of brands, please contact Peter Shreeve at BMRB International on 020 8566 5000.
UMS	Ulster Marketing Surveys
VCR	Video Cassette Recorder

01/2000