DEG Releases Q1 2022 Digital Media Entertainment Report

Posted by on

DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group announced it has released its first quarter 2022 digital media 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 First Quarter 2022 Digital Media Entertainment Report compiled by DEG members, tracking sources and retail input.*

Home Entertainment Spending Rose 10.9% to $8.7 Billion in 2022 First Quarter

Digital purchases of theatrical titles increased 17.3%, fueled by renewed box-office activity

May 13, 2022 — Consumers spent $8.7 billion on movies and television shows consumed at home and on the go in the first quarter of 2022. Spending rose almost 11 percent from the $7.8 billion consumers spent in the first three months of 2021, a growth achieved even as consumers increasingly sought out-of-home experiences after almost two years of limited activity in response to the spread of COVID-19.

The 2022 increase – including a 13.8 percent increase across all digitally delivered formats including electronic sell-through (EST), video on demand (VOD) and subscription streaming – was fueled by an increase in new theatrical releases, which are historically a key driver of home entertainment spending, released in premium and traditional windows.

Among the highlights for the First Quarter 2022:

• Digital purchases (EST) of theatrical titles rose more than 17 percent, including premium titles, helping to drive an almost 7 percent increase in EST overall in the quarter.

• Premium releases enjoy strong consumer interest and spending in this window is included in DEG tracking for the first time in first quarter 2022**.

• While still significantly below pre-pandemic levels, box-office spending on the titles released to the home in the first quarter jumped more than 500 percent from the year earlier period, feeding consumers’ appetite for fresh feature films.

• Among the first quarter’s best-performing titles across transactional formats were American Underdog, Dog, Dune, Encanto, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, House of Gucci, No Time to Die, Sing 2, Spider-man: No Way Home, Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Yellowstone Season 4.

• Subscription streaming rose almost 17 percent in the quarter from the year earlier period, as direct- to-consumer services including AMC+, Disney+, HBO Max, Paramount+, Peacock and others continued to add subscribers at a healthy rate.

If you would like to discuss DEG’s First Quarter 2022 Digital Media Entertainment Report, please email Marcy Magiera at marcy@degonline.org.

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

** Digital transaction spending (EST and VOD) includes premium releases, but not Disney+ Premier Access titles. Reporting for first quarter 2021 was revised to include premium titles for purposes of comparison with 2022.

For reference, DEG provides a list of digital entertainment terms and definitions on its web site, at www. https://www.degonline.org/portfolio_page/deg-digital-entertainment-definitions/.