Stat Sheet

DVD is Dead, DVD Lives - July 8, 2008

Some conflicting reports out today about the future of DVD.

Starting with the bad news… Lehman Bros. analyst Anthony DiClemente downgraded Time Warner, Disney, News Corp., CBS and Viacom today, predicting sharp DVD declines similar to what the music industry has seen with the CD format.

DiClemente bases it on a downturn in disc sales at big box retailers and a shift to lower-margin rentals through iTunes and Netflix, as well as his belief that DVDs have lost their cool among the young. He dismisses the theory that the long-tail will help prolong the DVD format. He's also not hopeful that digital sales will make up for lost disc sales, again pointing to the music industry.

Not everyone is buying that and a report out from Knowledge Networks seems to dispute that younger generations are done with discs. In its report "How People Use the Video Marketplace," Knowledge says DVD is the format of choice among Gen X and Gen Y.

Knowledge reports that 67% of Gen Xers surveyed (those 30-43 years old) and 71% of Gen Y (those 13-29) reported buying at least 1 DVD a month. In comparison, 37% of Gen Y reported downloading video, while 18% of the Gen X group said they do.

Both generations are way ahead of Boomers when it comes to watching and downloading video online. Just 11% of Young Boomers, those aged 44-54, have downloaded video.

But even Gen Y and Gen X are rarely buying movie downloads - just 2% report buying downloads on a monthly basis.        

 -- Jennifer Netherby

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