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Surprisingly, cheaper Blu-ray movies make everyone happy

by Richard Lawler posted Aug 31st 2009 at 4:34PM

According to VideoBusiness, Rentrak reports show a 10% drop in pricing on new releases to $23.47 and 1/3 lower pricing on catalog titles to $17.23. Still, that's apparently not low enough for some retailers, who hope to see high definition flicks priced just a few dollars above their DVD editions. Of course, while we're more than willing to pay $25 for Jerry Maguire on Blu-ray (love Tom Cruise, even jumping on couches) we can see how that would be problematic for some consumers. Still, an NPD analyst is quoted saying "price is a moving target" as mainstream buyers enter the market, where do you think the magic number for Blu-ray acceptance is?

Surprise surprise, most home video spending still on discs

by Richard Lawler posted May 13th 2009 at 3:42PM

Just in case you needed another reminder that despite some interesting developments, digital isn't quite overtaking disc just yet, as NPD's latest figures indicate 63 percent of consumer spending is still on DVD purchases. Blu-ray purchases snapped up 7 percent, rentals of DVD and Blu-ray discs together were rolled up to take 18 percent of the pie, VOD accounted for 9 percent with 3 percent of the cash left for digital downloads and online streaming. Still, all wasn't lost for internet based options, while out of the more than 11,000 surveyed only 9 percent of those with internet at home reported watching a movie via streaming that's up 4 points from last year, same for rented downloads, up to 8 percent from 4 in the previous year. The much hyped video game console marketplaces? Less than 5 percent of consumers have checked them out yet (We'll wait for one to launch on Wii.) Interestingly, but not all that surprising given the crossover, the same people into digital video are also heavy consumers of Blu-ray and DVD, but the overall indication is that packaged media still has some time in the spotlight before consumers find a reason to switch.

[Via Electronista]

Blu-ray making greenbacks, sales up 72% to start '09

by Richard Lawler posted May 6th 2009 at 8:12PM

Congratulations Blu-ray, you might be ready to step into the zone of mass market acceptance, as NPD's retail tracking service found Q1 sales of standalone players up 72 percent over last year, moving over 400,000 units with a 14% increase in dollar sales. Last year sure the format survived mad fights but high prices were a setback; fast forward to March when an online survey of 6,994 people found awareness has reached 90 percent in the last six months, with customers fascinated by its updates. Although BD-Live is looking more and more like an unneeded gimmick, the real facts are people care about cost and average player prices dropped from $393 last year to $261 in 2009. The "Blu-ray report" suggests the magic number is $214 for folks like Shawn Marion, so more room might be needed to breeze, and could come as soon as this fall around the time Vizio's player finally appears. It might be tragic for Vudu, CBHD and others trying to get a foothold, but Blu-ray's magic wand is word of mouth - so while much talked about, but much lower selling tech like Kindle is happy as hell to get a record deal, right now Blu-ray's unique skills can't be compared.

Ripples from Circuit City and Tweeter to affect upscale dealers?

by Steven Kim posted Nov 5th 2008 at 10:34AM

Circuit City and Tweeter
It's not like folks in the market for custom-install gear go to big box retailers like Circuit City and Tweeter for their "fix," but who can deny the way that those Sunday paper ads get the imagination going about how to improve your digital lifestyle? Prognosticators of all things CE, NPD Group, says that the diminishing fortunes of these big box stores will be felt at specialty dealers, and not necessarily in a good way. Sure, the disappearance of all that advertisement money from the CE pool might hurt awareness; but in the end, we know all those displaced regular customers of Circuit City and/or Tweeter will need to shop somewhere, so it's also an opportunity for smaller shops. Tough times are ahead, but there's also opportunity for retailers who can provide top-notch service.

Best Buy accounts for most Blu-ray purchases, but Amazon and Wal-mart are catching up

by Richard Lawler posted Jul 10th 2008 at 10:26AM

Looks like all those specials are paying off for Amazon and Wal-mart, as surveys done last fall and this spring indicate they're narrowing the gap with "leading Blu-ray shopping destination" Best Buy. No nifty percentage numbers this time, but according to VideoBusiness, Amazon's own findings indicate its share of the Blu-ray retail market is 3.5 times bigger than its DVD slice. That seems to jibe with NPD's finding placing it number two, followed by Wal-mart (benefiting from enhanced Blu-ray displays and sales of its own), then Target and Blockbuster, respectively, having overtaken Circuit City in the period from fall to spring. Is there anything other than deep discounts and BOGOs that decides where you buy Blu?

Leaked NPD numbers show HD DVD hardware sales still trailing Blu-ray

by Richard Lawler posted Feb 11th 2008 at 11:51PM Breaking News

While the official tally isn't out, TWICE apparently has leaked data from The NPD Group -- which wouldn't confirm the accuracy of the numbers -- indicating HD DVD continued to trail Blu-ray in hardware sales and sales dollars in the week ending January 26. These numbers show Blu-ray at 65% of units sold, HD DVD at 28% (changed from 66% and 34% the week before, respectively) and combo players taking 6% of player sales. These figures still don't reflect the PS3 or the price-dropped Xbox 360 add-on, but right now it'll really be more interesting to see if Toshiba can hold any of that marketshare after today's events.

Think Blu-ray has it easy in 2008? NPD says not so fast

by Richard Lawler posted Jan 8th 2008 at 10:43PM


The Blu-ray Disc Association could be on cruise control right now. This time last year, they were already declaring victory, and while the opposition deals with key defections -- and rumors of more to come -- they're predicting 1 billion in software sales this year. Video Business reports that the NPD Group's session immediately following last night's BDA press conference confirmed many of the BDA's positive numbers from last year, but also identified possible resistance it will face in 2008 due to still high prices, confused and indifferent customers and competition from HD DVD / VOD / IPTV. Coincidentally, a suggestion for the BDA to get past this was offering a concierge service to educate customers, but we'll see what marketing initiatives they dream up to move people to Blu in '08.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 HD DVD player: 269000 sold

by Darren Murph posted Dec 18th 2007 at 5:16PM


We're betting we weren't the only ones curious to know how many Xbox 360 HD DVD players were included in the 750,000 number we saw thrown out late last month, and while 269,000 may sound massive at first, it's really not all that surprising. If you'll recall, Microsoft managed to move 92,000 of these things last holiday season, and considering its perpetually lower price (comparatively speaking), it's been a fairly attractive option for Xbox 360 owners looking to get into the HD DVD game. According to new sales figures outed by NPD Group, over one-third of the HD DVD standalone player market is made up of the aforementioned units, and the attach rate to the 360 install base sits at 3.4-percent. 'Course, if the price of this thing keeps a-droppin', we could easily see that percentage climb higher once the dust settles from the end-of-year buying frenzy.

[Via High-Def Digest]




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