Blu-ray Disc Sales Soar Nearly 30 Percent

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The Digital Entertainment Group (DEG) released its first quarter 2013 home entertainment report for the United States.

For more information visit: www.degonline.org

Unedited press release follows:

Home Entertainment Spending Rises Five Percent in First Quarter on Robust Blu-ray Disc, Digital Sales

Physical Sell-through Increases Two Percent
Sales of Blu-ray Disc Up Nearly 30 Percent
Electronic Sell-Through Grows 51 Percent; VOD Up 16 Percent

Bolstered by a strong box office and Easter weekend sales, the first quarter of 2013 saw a 5.08 percent increase in overall consumer spending compared to the same period last year. Several home entertainment products saw double-digit growth in the first quarter compared to 2012, including Blu-ray Disc sell-through and digital distribution. Additionally, total sell-through, physical and digital, increased five percent over the first quarter last year.

Highlights for the first quarter include:

• Blu-ray Disc and digital distribution continued their notable gains. Consumer spending on Blu-ray Disc jumped 28.5 percent and digital distribution was up 26 percent compared to the first quarter last year.

• Sales of new release product grew 12 percent, with new releases on Blu-ray Disc climbing 37 percent. Catalog titles also performed well on Blu-ray, with an increase of 16 percent over first quarter 2012.

• Electronic Sell-Through (EST) rose more than 51 percent over first quarter, due to the broader availability of titles and increased access to digital content.

• The number of Blu-ray homes continues to grow, with 3.2 million players sold in the first quarter (including BD set-tops, PS3s and HTiBs). Total household penetration of all Blu-ray compatible devices is close to 60 million U.S. homes.

• Further, consumer home entertainment is being increasingly enhanced as more homes purchase HDTVs. There were 9.4 million HDTVs sold to U.S. consumers in the first quarter 2013. HDTV penetration to date is now at more than 112.6 million U.S. households.

If you would like to discuss the DEG’s First Quarter 2013 Home Entertainment Report, please contact the DEG.