Los Angeles, Calif. – There was good news for Blu-ray and streaming video fans alike in the second quarter of 2014, with both showing sales growth, according to a home entertainment study released this week by the DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group.
The multi-industry digital entertainment content and technology promotional group said it charted a 2 percent rise in consumer spending on digital entertainment in the period.
The DEG found continued growth in digital purchases of movies and TV programs online, and a 10 percent increase in Blu-ray Disc sales from the same period last year.
The DEG said strong double-digit growth in digital sales “continued to underscore the ongoing commitment by consumers to purchasing and collecting digital filmed entertainment and television content.”
Specifically, the group found overall consumer spending grew 2 percent in the period over the second quarter of 2013. For the first half of 2014, consumer spending was flat compared to the year-earlier period.
Electronic sell-through spending climbed 32 percent in the quarter versus the same period last year. Sales for EST jumped 37 percent in the first half of the year over the first six months of 2013.
Encouraging was the double-digit growth in sales for Blu-ray Discs, which the DEG said was aided by an increase in theatrical release spending, which climbed 18 percent in the period over the same time last year.
The DEG said digital sales “have been especially impressive for new theatrical releases, rising 90 percent in the first six months of the year over the same period in 2013.”
Subscription video-on-demand revenue for services like Netflix climbed 26 percent in the second quarter of 2014 versus 2013. For the first half of the year, SVOD rose 26 percent from the year-earlier period.
