DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group announced it has released its third quarter 2021 home entertainment report for the United States.
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Unedited press release follows:
DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group today released its Third Quarter 2021 Home Entertainment Report compiled by DEG members, tracking sources and retail input.*
U.S. Home Entertainment Spending Rose More Than 9% in Third Quarter 2021, Approaching $24 Billion for the Year So Far
Eighteen months after the start of the CVOD-19 pandemic, home and personal entertainment consumption remains robust even as consumers increasingly venture out
November 8, 2021 — Consumers spent nearly $8 billion to watch movies and TV shows for home and personal viewing in the third quarter of 2021, an almost 10 percent increase over the same period in 2020, which was a record-breaking period for home viewing as consumers limited out-of-home activity in response to the spread of the novel coronavirus. Overall U.S. consumer spending across digital and physical home entertainment formats in the first nine months of 2021 was $23.6 billion, a more than 6 percent increase from the $22.2 billion consumers spent in the same period a year earlier.
Factors limiting growth in the first nine months of 2021 include few new theatrical releases, which are historically a key driver of home entertainment spending, particularly in the earlier part of the period. However, with pandemic conditions improving as the year progressed and theatrical releases restarting, spending on home purchases of theatrical new releases has begun to pick up. It is expected to continue in a positive direction as theatrical releases across the industry return to a typical pattern. During third quarter 2021, industrywide physical disc sales in the theatrical new release category increased 38 percent and digital EST sales** of theatrical new releases were up 73 percent, according to one reporting source.
Additional Highlights for Third Quarter 2021:
• In the third quarter, overall spending on digital formats (including EST**, VOD** and subscription streaming) rose 12 percent, while streaming spending grew 17 percent, fueled by consumer interest in the offerings of multiple major new services. For the first three quarters of 2021, total consumer spending on digital formats was also strong, rising 10 percent from the same period in 2020, to almost $22 billion, while subscription streaming climbed nearly 20 percent.
• Sales and rental of physical discs showed some resiliency in the third quarter, falling only 11% from last year after trending down more than 20% per quarter in recent quarters. The improved trend reflects more people shopping at retail this year and the release of some new theatrical titles, as well as continued engagement with catalog.
• Among the top titles purchased** and rented** in the third quarter were movies F9: The Fast Saga (Universal), Free Guy (Disney), Godzilla vs. Kong (Warner Bros.), Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard (Lionsgate), A Quiet Place Part II (Paramount), and Wrath of Man (MGM); and TV series Yellowstone (Paramount), The Office (Universal), and Rick and Morty (Warner Bros.).
• Premium window rental and sales results currently are not included in industry reporting; however, early insights suggest that interest is high, and results are strong.
• The 6 percent increase in U.S. home entertainment spending in the first nine months of 2021 came amid a nearly 63 percent drop in box-office. In the third quarter, box-office spending rose to $1 billion, however, from almost nothing in the same period in 2020, reflecting the ramp up of theatrical releases as COVID- 19 conditions improve around the country.
* Please note, these numbers are preliminary. Final numbers will be available in early December. Please contact the DEG for an updated version.
** Digital sales (EST) and rental (VOD) spending does not include premium releases (PVOD/PEST). Including PVOD/PEST 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.
