The Blu-ray crystal ball (or is it the magic eight ball?) is at it again. This time, the prediction for big Blu comes from Entertainment Merchants Association, whose 2008 Annual Report on the Home Entertainment Industry includes a forecast that Blu-ray Disc sales will surpass DVD sales in 2012.
The report found that sales of nearly 9 million high-definition discs in 2007 generated more than $260 million in consumer spending. The EMA believes in 2012, Blu-ray Disc sales will be around $9.5 billion. Cha-ching!
That’s faith in a hefty amount more Blu-ray content coming out. Even with a decline from a peak of nearly 14,000 in 2005, standard DVD releases totaled 12,177 last year, according to the report. Even with 10 new releases a week would give Blu-ray only 5,200 a year—and while there are weeks like this one where 10 are being released, there are also others like last one that gave us only four new titles, according to Blu-ray.com listings.
If EMA is basing its forecasts on an estimated price drop in hardware and software, as happened with standard DVD, then perhaps this one could be on target. But standard DVD didn’t have to compete with things like Netflix or Apple TV as it grew.
Via: Engadget HD
Price Man, have you considered that some people enjoy the “guinea pigs” role. i certainly don’t do it for most categories of electronics (too expensive), but i have a couple areas where i will be first on board to test. the difference lies in accepting/understanding the risk in early adoption. i certainly feel for consumers that buy a product that’s touted as “done”. maybe that’s might be part of the learning process… but please don’t assume everyone is so naive to think a new product (or any product) is 100% complete.
In this world there are guinea pigs and then there are the rest of us. Guinea pigs are used by their masters (Sony and friends) to test out a product that still isn’t complete (BD Profile 1.x). The rest of us will purchase the finalized product (BD-Live) at a significant price reduction because there were guinea pigs out there who took the brunt of the worthless BD players’ cost. Thanks Soundzilla for buying a crappy BS player!
Around here, (Southern Ontario) gas is about $5 gallon, grocery bills are up, as is the cost of diapers, and property taxes are also headed up.
I see GM laying off 2400 people, and their suppliers are laying off people, real estate is down, contruction layoffs are coming.
I ‘m fortunate that I still have my job, and that I carry no debt other than some remaining mortgage which will be repaid in two years.
So, yes, I’ll keep playing my upscaled DVDs soundzilla. It’s not that I wouldnt like to have HD movies, I love home theater also, but in this economic environment I’m not prepared to go into debt for it. HD is a luxury, and while $400 and $20 per movie may not be a huge dent in your wallet, for some of us, it is. only HD I get is from OTA broadcasts. - as you say prioritize - Food, Shelter comes first for me.
Bird watching in 1080p 7.1 Now that’s a hobby
Name:
Email:
Remember my personal information
Notify me of follow-up comments?
Please answer the question below:
Type the 3rd letter of the word "woofer":
Electronic House is now available in a digital edition. Learn more.
or how it compares to the comparably priced Runco
Stay up-to-date with home electronics. 
Weekly email offers tips, info and product news.
Get the content that's important to you.
I bought one Blu-ray player and there’s nothing obsolete about it. C’mon. If you’re posting here you’re smart enough to do your homework on which players to buy. I bought a PS3. It’s fully Blu-ray compliant to the latest spec. Done. Never had a problem. Upgrades are free. Nothing “crappy” about it.
Look, if food and shelter are still considerations in the forefront of your mind, it’s probably not wise to invest in an HDTV, HD broadcasts or broadband Internet connectivity, let alone any Blu-ray player or media. Going into debt is never a good idea, certainly not for a hobby. I still contend that most people posting here and complaining about pricing just don’t want to pay what it’s worth for Blu-ray, they want it like Priceline - Their price or no price.
Heck I know plenty of people who spend $299 on beer and wine in three months. I’d give that up in a heartbeat if I was sitting with an HDTV and no HD media to feed it.