
Although HDTVs were atop nearly everyone's
holiday wish list, it seems that folks aren't splurging as much on their now-stagnant DVD collection as in years past, which could be an "early warning sign" for 2007. According to a recent report by Pali Research analysts Richard Greenfield and Mark Smaldon, next year could be the first year in consumer spending history that DVD sales actually decline. The report is based on Best Buy / Circuit City's relatively sluggish 2006 disc sales, and when you consider the
sagging record sales on the music front, the scenario isn't too hard to fathom. Although there's no pinpointed reason why folks aren't divulging quite as much disposable income on DVDs, some analysts suggest that the onset of internet movie downloads and films on demand are cutting into actual disc sales -- something
Comcast (and other providers) could have a hand in. Notably, folks are bearish when speculating about the HD DVD and Blu-ray impact, as they say that
high definition films won't sell enough to put a dent in the expected downturn, which could bleed all the way into 2008.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
a2 @ Dec 30th 2006 1:09AM
Why buy when you can rent?
I'm done with owning movies. For whatever reason, I bought into the whole owning a movie movement, and after some 200 DVDs on my shelf later, I questioned why I was doing it. It's a sizable investment for items that I rarely watch over and over again. There are the few that I do like to see more than once, but that list is very small.
Netflix changed everything for me. I'd much rather pay a flat monthy fee and just have the movies sent to me, and I can keep them as long as I want.
As far a receiving movies digitally, yeah that does interest me. If only they could somehow mirror the Netflix model.
Justin @ Dec 30th 2006 10:51AM
I've sort of hit my limit, too, in the sense that I have what I need.
I have maybe 200 or so titles I've scrounged up over the last seven or eight years, but I haven't bought that many this year. I already have the ones I need. Good stuff comes out very rarely now that I'm "caught up", so to speak..
Craig @ Dec 30th 2006 3:45PM
You can blame downloading and/or renting for declining movie sales, or you can realize that the movies being released lately basically suck, so nobody will want to buy them anyway.
The movie studios need to make something worth owning first before people will want to buy them. Duh.
Robert @ Dec 30th 2006 5:10PM
i love netflix its so much better than going out and getting the dvd, i wish i could download them i would pay more a month for that
dat @ Dec 30th 2006 8:17PM
i have the same thoughts as you guys. i have actually about 450 dvds and finally stopped buying about a quarter of the way through this year. i just realized that i didn't watch many of them repeatedly so i just went ahead and got a netflix account instead.
right now i figure i'm going to just sell off my collection, except for my favorites, even if it only get me 3 bucks a piece because at the end that's still $1000+ in my pocket.
undersaur @ Dec 31st 2006 1:54AM
Yeah, it was Netflix for me too-- once I got a Netflix subscription, there was really no reason to buy anything except things I wanted to display proudly on my shelf or staple date movies.
tiw @ Dec 31st 2006 4:14AM
Obviously, declining record and movie sales have nothing to do with:
1) Micropayment options that are more efficient for the consumer because they can choose what parts they want
2) Inflation
3) Shrinking amount of disposable income due to pay that does not rise accordingly with 2)
4) The lack of sold HD displays and Blu-Ray/HD-DVD players as a result of 3)
GhostDoggy @ Dec 31st 2006 8:56AM
I think that any impact will be seen more in the sales dollars than the actually number of copies sold. Add to this the netflixian environment and then end result should have been anticipated.
Only Hollywood can complain about the influence of DVD rentals and legit downloads on the decline of DVD sales. If they want sales, stop allowing licensing of rentals and downloads. Then, and only then, can you blame piracy for the decline.
Zachary V Nettles @ Dec 31st 2006 9:58AM
In my case, I am not buying anymore DVD's until I see which HD format wins. Ditto for a player. I can easily rent a title if I feel compelled to watch one. I have a Sony Bravia 40" HDTV, Yamaha upconverting receiver, so the SD DVD's are actually displaying quite well.
moe29 @ Dec 31st 2006 10:43AM
The quality of moving being released by Hollywood is terrible. They need to drop DVD prices to $10.00 a pop. $19.99 for The Dukes of Hazard is like getting hit in the head (pocket?) with a 2x4.