Nielsen VideoScan High-Def market share for week ending January 4th, 2009
by Ben Drawbaugh 
posted Jan 10th 2009 at 1:57PM
The fourth quarter was very good to Blu-ray and from the looks of this, the so called fifth quarter is going to be even better. According to the Nielsen VideoScan numbers, courtesy of Home Media Magazine, the market share of the top 20 titles for Blu-ray set a new record at 16 percent -- previous record was 14 percent the week The Dark Knight was released. The real encouraging part of these numbers though is the fact that only one new release made the top 10 (Eagle Eye), while the rest were more than likely new Blu-ray owners burning through their gift cards. Of course this begs the question of what will happen after the gift cards run out, but we believe that once you go Blu it's nearly impossible to go back to DVD.
Filed under: Blu-ray
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Bozster @ Jan 10th 2009 2:22PM
Ben said: "but we believe that once you go Blu it's nearly impossible to go back to DVD. "
Yep, until reality of prices kicks in. Then most realize how good really upscaled DVD looks like for the price.
RockinOscar @ Jan 10th 2009 2:47PM
i don't know about that. how many times do you have to be told that video isn't the only thing Blu-Ray has to offer?
which better audio options and with only a few bucks over the dvd prices and with options to rent blu-ray how can someone still say that upscaling dvds are a better option when viewing movies on your HDTV.
HD MOVIES FOR YOUR HDTV PEOPLE.
Bozster @ Jan 10th 2009 3:28PM
and how many times do you have to be told to understand that when you don't have money to spend to use the technology to the proper extent even if it's the best thing since sliced bread people will have hard time using it, because you know, there's no money. It's called finding the middle ground. If it was as you want it, we would all be driving ferrari's and lamborghinis.
And what few bucks over DVD are you talking about? Terminator 2 DVD $1.99-$4.99 Blu-Ray version: $20+..
Only a few titles on sale and mostly new releases are "few" bucks more. People don't buy special edition versions (those are for collectors and super fans) most people buy just the regular version and that's hardly on the same level with Blu-Ray as well.
Wake up, not everyone lives of off mom's and dad's allowance and cable, upscaled DVDs and VOD HD look much better then analog we had before. So people are using HDTVs to it's abilities and when (if) studios lower prices to normal prices, we can talk about being it acceptable for the quality.
minimalist @ Jan 10th 2009 4:18PM
Speak for yourself.
I haven't bought a DVD since I got my Blu-ray player a year ago. If I want to buy a movie and its not available on BD I'll just wait for it to be released and rent it in the meantime. Even when I rent from Netflix, I always go to the HD stuff first.
After you've gotten used to HD it is indeed a letdown to watch non-HD sources, even the pretty good ones like DVD. I'll do it only when there is no other option and its fine but its not what I really want. The issue is not the money, its the availability.
Besides, I rarely pay more than 20-24 for a BD which was what I was paying for DVD's at Best Buy in the early to mid 2000's.
DrCheese @ Jan 10th 2009 6:17PM
In case people here don't already know, Bozster is just nifinity posting under yet another alias. It's been this guys mission in life since day one to post negative stuff about blu-ray and he's already been banned before here.
Mike @ Jan 10th 2009 6:50PM
I'd be driving a Porsche.
At any rate, if I think the BD is too high I will wait or just rent. Now that I have a BD player I will not buy another DVD.
JimC @ Jan 10th 2009 7:30PM
I got T2 for $10 at Walmart...
WebDev511 @ Jan 10th 2009 2:40PM
Big post holiday drops in revenue, but I guess that isn't entirely unexpected.
The 16% share is less "more spending on Blu" than it is DVD purchases dropped LOT more than Blu did.
More buyers is great, so long as the studios don't sacrifice quantity of titles for quality.
TOWERGROVE @ Jan 12th 2009 12:35PM
A plastic disc will always cost less to produce than a sd card, PERIOD. Folks, Bluray is here to stay. People have spoken. Get over it!
LonnieDvD @ Jan 10th 2009 5:19PM
Wait until we get further into the year, and another million people lose their jobs. How many of them will keep buying Blu-Ray discs? Unless the movie is a Sci-Fi flick, there is very little point in paying such a premium for Blu-Ray. DVD will rule until 2012, perhaps even 2015.
WebDev511 @ Jan 10th 2009 10:44PM
2012? There's no doubt that Blu is now established on the high end, but if it takes until 2012 or later for the economy recover enough for discretionary spending to rebound it's possible that another format to come on the scene.
Anyone see the story about SD based distribution?
Mike @ Jan 10th 2009 6:54PM
I bet those that loose a job stop buying DVD as well....probably rent less too.
mitchelljd @ Jan 11th 2009 1:24AM
well i understand that most discs can be had online or discounted for $20-25 but i understand the point. prices need to come down on the list price side.
BUT, the big part here is that of discs sold, 16% were Blu-Ray's which is a pretty big deal and should only rise over time. it is significant as the players bought over the holidays are now starting to get used. have fun everyone :-)