DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group announced it has released its third quarter 2020 home entertainment report for the United States.

For more information visit: www.degonline.org

Unedited press release follows:

DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group today released its Third Quarter 2020 Home Entertainment Report compiled by DEG members, tracking sources and retail input.*

Overall U.S. Consumer Spending on Home Entertainment Exceeds $7 Billion for Third Consecutive Quarter, Surpassing $22 Billion Year-to-Date

Consumer Spending on Digital Rentals and Purchases Up 20% Year-to-Date

November 11, 2020 — Consumers spent $7.3 billion to watch movies and TV shows for home and personal viewing in the third quarter of 2020, an almost 18 percent increase over the same period a year earlier. When new releases slowed as a result of production halts and theater closures during the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers seamlessly shifted their viewing to a broad variety of content including catalog movies and TV shows.

During the third quarter, demand was particularly strong across internet-delivered rental platforms (iVOD), with spending rising 25 percent during the third quarter, and 46 percent year-to-date. Consumer spending on theatrical titles through iVOD rose 23 percent during the quarter and 45 percent for the first three quarters of the year. Growth in the number of consumer transactions was even higher than the growth in spending, which was limited by lower average transaction prices for catalog tiles, versus new releases.

Overall U.S. consumer spending across digital and physical home entertainment formats in the first nine months of 2020 was $22.2 billion, a 23 percent increase from the $18 billion consumers spent in the same period a year earlier.

Among the highlights for Third Quarter 2020:

• For the first nine months of 2020, total consumer spending on digital formats (including EST, VOD** and subscription streaming) was strong, rising 34 percent from the same period in 2019, to almost $20 billion, while subscription streaming climbed 39 percent.

• Digital purchase (EST) and rental (VOD) transactions are up 20 percent year to date, over the same period last year.

• Among the top titles purchased and rented** in the third quarter were all three seasons of Yellowstone (Paramount), Trolls World Tour (Universal), The Tax Collector (RLJ Entertainment), Bill & Ted Face the Music (Orion), The King of Staten Island (Universal), Force of Nature (Lionsgate), Sonic the Hedgehog (Paramount), Schitt’s Creek Season 6 (CBS), Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Warner Bros.) and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Warner Bros.).

* Please note, these numbers are preliminary. Final numbers will be available in early December. Please contact the DEG for an updated version.

** VOD spending does not include premium video on demand (PVOD). Including PVOD would increase the total consumer spend on digital.

For reference, DEG provides a list of digital entertainment terms and definitions on its web site here.