The most impressive thing about this is that they went from 1 million to 2 million in only 2 months.
Total Blu-ray Disc movie sales across Europe have reached over two million units announced the Blu-ray Disc Association European Promotions Committee at a press reception in London this week. The most recent figures show Blu-ray Disc movie sales totaled 2.37 million, which means that 79% of the High Definition movie discs bought by consumers year-to-date across Europe were in the Blu-ray Disc format compared with 21% in the HD DVD format, according to sales data provided by Media Control Gfk International.
The news of the two million milestone comes within two months of the announcement of one million unit sales, which was achieved in early November last year. This news illustrates a rapidly accelerating rate in the growth of Blu-ray Disc sales across Europe, so the Blu-ray Disc Association says.
A graphic illustration of Blu-ray Disc’s rapid establishment comes through direct comparison of its performance with that of the DVD-Video format at a comparable stage in its development. DVD-Video was first introduced into Western Europe in 1997, and the following year some 230,000 DVD players were installed and 2.0 million discs were sold through. In comparison, Blu-ray Disc made its first tentative launch in Western Europe in 2006, and the following year some 3.2 million PLAYSTATION 3 (PS3) consoles and 34,000 standalone players were installed while 2.3 million Blu-ray Discs sold through according to data from Screen Digest.
“Sony Europe is delighted with the popularity of PS3 and the positive impact it’s had on Blu-ray Disc sales,” commented David Walstra, Director, Home Video Europe, Sony Europe.
Sales up to Christmas were strong with over half a million Blu-ray movie discs sold in December, outselling HD-DVD by 3:1 with a 75% market share. The biggest Christmas release was Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End with sales of nearly 100,000 units. This was joined by impressive sales for Simpsons: The Movie and Casino Royale.
