Centris: Blu-ray Player Household Penetration Reaches 26%

20 Mar, 2012 By: Erik Gruenwedel

---

About one in four homes had a Blu-ray Disc player or capable consumer electronic device in the fourth quarter of 2011, up 47% from the same period in 2010, according to new research.

Horsham, Pa.-based Centris Research disclosed the finding in a quarterly report outlining communication and technology penetration in the home. The Blu-ray data mirrors weekly Home Media Magazine research figures, including that 26% of total disc sales ($42.1 million) revenue came from the high-definition format for the week ended March 10.

It is the Blu-ray market that continues to drive packaged media sales and generate higher margins for studios than standard DVD, disc rentals, transactional video-on-demand and electronic sellthrough. The format also is a foundation in Hollywood’s effort to launch cloud-based digital locker UltraViolet.

Surprisingly, the number of households with a DVD player increased 4% to 91% in the period, compared with 87% in the previous year. The data underscores the notion that average consumer demand for optical disc entertainment remains strong.

In addition, the report — based on 2,000 Internet survey respondents monthly — found that household penetration of time delayed TV programming via digital video recorders (DVR) also increased 4% to 38% from 36% in 2010.

The report also found that HDTV penetration increased 6% to 63%, while high-definition TV service from multichannel video program distributors increased 11% to 42% of households. Households with a TV rose 1% to nearly 100% market penetration.

“The [data] shows that U.S. households continue to purchase a broad range of technologies,” said Bill Beaumont, president of Centris.
 

Bookmark it: