160°

Blu-ray spending up 91% in 2009 to $407 Million

Spending on Blu-ray Disc software was up 91% in the first half of 2009 to $407 million, according to today's mid-year report from DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group (www.degonline.org).

That's even more notable in the context of the overall market for packaged media, which was down 3.9% to $9.73 billion, and a whopping 13.5% in the sellthrough category alone. Those numbers would have been much worse had it not been for Blu-ray, which saw a 62% increase in rentals, driving that category up 8.3% overall.

Also propping up the numbers was a 21% increase in digital distribution to $968 million, including $196 million for electronic sellthrough.

shocky165397d ago

I love blu-ray movies, the picture quality is immense.

Anon19745397d ago

I thought Blu-Ray was doomed.
It's funny. I just took a trip down memory lane and read some old articles about Blu-Ray from about a year ago. Man, did people ever hate it for some reason. I wonder what those people are hating now?

Pennywise5397d ago

Really, nothing compares to the quality. Even with HD Cable you get distortion and sub-par sound.

sack_boi5397d ago

You post the same sh!t at every Bluray article

darthv725397d ago

Does this indicate bluray as a whole which would encompass movies as well as games? Basically anything that is available on a bluray disc?

I know I havent been getting movies but I do buy games. Does that count for supporting the format or do I have to buy movies to count?

Anon19745397d ago (Edited 5397d ago )

After having to endure 2 years of "Blu-Ray is Doomed" articles it still brings a smile to my face every time I see good news reported. Ultimately it didn't matter to me if Blu-Ray or HD-DVD came out on top, but so many were so adamant that Blu-Ray would fail, and why? What personal stake did any of them have in it if one succeeded over the other? I just think it's funny, that's all.

Nice to see you make everyone feel like their opinions are welcome on these forums. Way to add to the decorum of the community.

TheAntiFanboy5397d ago

The picture quality is only better because it has more space. Big deal. *shrug* Anything that can fit an HD movie will look crystalline superb.

Greywulf5397d ago (Edited 5397d ago )

because they certainly pretended they could see the awesome quality of HD-DVD LOL. When that blew up on re-entry they then pretended digital downloads will have better quality than a disc...?

Its like bizzaro world.

If you want the best quality, its only on bluray. Its a luxury item at this point. If you cant afford it, then compressed HD with low data rates is your only option.

@antifanboy:

"The picture quality is only better because it has more space. Big deal. *shrug*"

Well, thats the reason you upgrade to media with more space. When your reach the limit of one, you move to the next. Did you think DVD space vs CD space wasn't a big deal either?

Hes only rich because he has more money! 0_o

Nineball21125397d ago

As strange as it may sound... I wonder if the recession is having a postive impact on blu-ray sales?

I mean, would you rather spend $12 on a movie ticket for a movie you get to see once, plus the money on the candy and drinks, plus the gas money to get there...

Or would you rather spend $20 - $25 on a blu-ray and watch it as many times as you would like, in your own home?

*shrug*

Greywulf5397d ago

I think its because they are releasing digital copies w/hd movie for free.

You get your 1080p movie when you want to sit down and watch @ home, then you have the digital copy for your computer/whatever.

Ramtough5397d ago

Don't people realize Redray is really where it's at?! Morons.

Toenado5397d ago (Edited 5397d ago )

Also the sound quality on blu ray is superb allowing for 3 lossless audio formats.

JBaby3435397d ago

Strange I could have sworn lots of people said this was going to wither and die :P

darthv725397d ago (Edited 5397d ago )

Some of you dont know how to separate fanboy logic from common sense logic. IQ for both HDDVD and Blu are "virtually" identical. The advantage that blu had over the former is in the AQ department. More space...less compression for audio systems. The variations in bitrate for the IQ is almost negligible.

You also have to understand one of the (if not THE) main reasons blu won out was simply support. You have to figure Sony threw out the name playstation to the studios as a lure to get the backing. I can almost guaranty the selling point was from the notion of Sony saying "your movies will sell over the competitor due to the overwhelming popularity of the playstation brand". The trojan horse of the PS3 seemed to be the main focus at the time. Prices of regular players are down considerably. I seen a Magnavox blu player for $98 at wal-mart.

I enjoy the quality of both formats and now more than ever with the price of hddvd movies at or around $5 ea. Sure there wont be any new releases but I am looking at the ones currently available and in comparison to their blu brethren and you see the likes of the harry potter films, heroes, transformers, 300 and other higher profile movies that are dirt cheap next to the blu versions.

I can say that if the studios want to sell more blu movies, they need to adjust the availability of regular dvd versions. Possibly make it where the dvd is released a week later than the blu. This would be a risky move but could start a trend turning more people on to the hd format.

Possibly eliminating the release of a sd version of a movie alltogether. Although...it would need a very high profile movie to really make that happen. It cant be something that is already out (obviously) like the LotR series. It would need to be a big release like maybe Tranformers 2 or Star Trek. With only the blu version available, and people wanting to buy, elimination of choice could entice more people to adopt the format faster.

rockleex5397d ago

How much money Sony makes from Bluray sales?

JonnyBigBoss5397d ago

I'm not sure if immense was the right word, but the quality is pretty ridiculous. You can see the pores on an actor's skin. Really insane for movies like Dark Knight.

EXCLUSIVEGAMER5397d ago (Edited 5397d ago )

all the professional analysts wearing hddvd undershirts said bluray is a massive failure.

@1.15: yeah i think the word he was looking for is:

unmatched, unrivaled, or sonys own slogan: "like no other"

pixelsword5397d ago

I've never heard one person regret that their PS3 also played Blu-Ray Discs.

onanie5397d ago

Woah Darth, a bit touchy there, aren't you?

At the time of your last comment, no one had made any accusation that blu-ray was better than HD-DVD. So, why your unsolicitated assertion of otherwise?

Blu-ray IS the only format around at this time, so naturally the provider of best image quality at this time. Normally, such comments shouldn't have garnered a negative response, even from diehard HD-DVD fans.

+ Show (15) more repliesLast reply 5397d ago
Anon19745397d ago

It always brings a smile to my face when I see the Nature Boy's comments.

mrv3215397d ago

BLU-RAY IS DOOMED LOOK AT THE SALES FIGUR... oh wait... quickly bash Sony on something else... PS3 is Doo.. oh wait that's doing surprisingly well... PSP is doo... well actually it sold 50 million units. Sony is doing rather well? Let's hope Sony release something new so we can bash it before it comes out and we've used it in order to have a negative effect on sales and claim it's doomed.

TheAntiFanboy5397d ago

How about SOE? The Matrix Online, Star Wars Galaxies: epic commercial failures.

OHHHHHH BURN!

lol jk I'm just having fun, <3 Sony :D

rockleex5397d ago (Edited 5397d ago )

1 million users within 2 weeks of release, totally shattering all MMORPG records before it. 4 million users within 2 months. Epic fail?

Btw, its coming to PS3 soon too. PS3 will add 2-3 million users easily. Then those 1 million or so constant Home users will likely eat it up and pay for a lot of stuff.

5397d ago
Kamikaze1355397d ago

I'm just waiting for the retail value to drop a bit before starting a collection =/

Show all comments (73)
190°

Microsoft’s Surface and Xbox hardware revenues take a big hit in Q3

Microsoft just posted the third quarter of its 2024 fiscal financial results. The software maker made $61.9 billion in revenue and a net income of $21.9 billion during Q3. Revenue is up 17 percent, and net income has increased by 20 percent.

Read Full Story >>
theverge.com
darthv7215h ago

Xbox content + services up 62% while hardware down 31%... seems about right with the way they tout you don't need the hardware to play. People can play on their phones or smart tv or other means. I don't hardly play on my consoles directly since getting devices like the logitech g-cloud and ps portal. Which is to also say I have been playing more digital than physical because of these devices.

solideagle2h ago

you should apply in MS PR team buddy, I think you will do a great job in my humble opinion :)

Cacabunga2h ago

I can tell people like you are an absolute minority..

If service is up means their fans and fanboys accepted this model and subscribed to it. The near future you will see a big decline because the service is saturated.

shinoff21831h ago

But that's been ms for years. When things aren't going their way they try to change the way things are said. For instance console sales are down, they stop telling how many sold instead telling us how many hours spent in halo or headshots. So it makes sense console sales down just say people are playing on more devices then previous. What they won't say is how many xbox players jumped ship to ps5.

Cacabunga14m ago

Hardware sales are so bad that Sony and Nintendo are blowing the sales off the water with their hardware.

If Xbox are losers, others aren’t..
Xbox already tried everything with Xbox live then subscriptions went down so much that they had to find something else. Their fans subscribed then reached saturation rather quickly.

Hardware and exclusive games is where it’s at! Keep gamers excited, announce decent software and people will support you

purple1014h ago

Xbox hardware revenue tanks to lowest point of Xbox Series generation

Profchaos4h ago

I'm not surprised surface is struggling they aren't relevant anymore

XBManiac3h ago

Too expensive hardware when others offer the same or more for less? Good work, Green Team.

SimpleDad3h ago(Edited 3h ago)

"Despite some early successes for Xbox games on rival platforms, Xbox hardware is down by a massive 31 percent this quarter."
"Without Activision Blizzard, Microsoft’s overall gaming revenue would have actually declined this quarter."
"Xbox content and services would have only been up a single percent without Activision Blizzard..."
"It looks like next quarter is going to be a similar story for gaming at Microsoft, too."

That is crazy... so A/B/K is carrying the whole Xbox gaming.
Oh and Microsoft will be fine. Windows, Office and Cloud are growing with each pc purchase.

purple1013h ago

Activision: "we gonna need a bigger rucksack/backpack please"

Microsoft: "why's that"

Activision: "to carry yo' weak ass'

Profchaos2h ago(Edited 2h ago)

Top brass have also wanted to start seeing returns on the 100 billion they have put into various Xbox related moves so seeing more multiplatform games is highly likely especially from abk

It's basically saying that PlayStation is the reason Xbox is afloat right now thinks to Ps5 versions of COD

Kornholic1h ago

So basically PS and PC gamers' money is keeping Xbox on life support.

Show all comments (19)
140°

Why Monopolies In Gaming Must Not Be Allowed

As of right now, there are no monopolies in the games industry, and for the sake of the medium as a whole, they never should either.

thorstein14h ago

Shouldn't be allowed in any field.

Inverno10h ago

And yet the biggest tech companies in America are essentially that. They buy up all the small comps only to kill them off and steal what they have, and if they can't buy em they bleed them to death.

jwillj2k49h ago

Eventually they’ll realize the value is with the employee not the company. Buying an IP means nothing if the people who contributed are let go. They’ll get it one day.

MrCrimson8h ago

tech is different because they buy threats and then kill them. Twitter bought Vine and did nothing with it. Despite people seemingly liking it. Could've had tiktok a decade before bytedance. go figure.

Zenzuu9h ago

Monopolies shouldn't be allowed regardless. Not just for gaming.

MrCrimson8h ago

They buy IPs not talent. That's why these buyouts never work and the IPs die. Right now it's too expensive to develop games - but I expect that to shift maybe as AI tools can make it easier. The best games have been indie games for awhile as big developers fuck their ips to death with "games as a service" -

120°

This Gigabyte GPU is now among the cheapest RTX 4090s on Amazon after a hefty deal

On Amazon, you can't get an RTX 4090 for less than this one from Gigabyte, which now offers great value after an eye-catching April deal.