The European HD DVD Promotional Group has announced that European HD DVD player owners have already bought an average of 3.8 movies each, compared to just 0.6 movies sold per Blu ray player. The figures were collated by independent research group GfK and analyse the number of movies sold for all HD players (standalone players and consoles) across the UK, France, Germany, Spain Italy and Benelux countries.
The strong attach rate (movies sold per player) shows that consumers buying HD DVD players are keen to build their HD DVD movie collections to enjoy interactive features as well as stunning video and sound quality, according to the Group.
"HD DVD not only offers all the picture and audio benefits of other HD formats, it also has the most affordable and feature-rich players on the market today. Unlike other HD formats, every player produced gives the consumer the same consistent HD performance and experience," said Alan Bell, Chief Technology Officer, Paramount Pictures.
Rodolphe Buet, Senior Vice President Business and Marketing, Studio Canal, added, "HD DVD allows us to offer movie lovers amazing new interactive features that run consistently whatever HD DVD player they might buy. These features, as well as high-definition video and high-resolution audio, mean that consumers really see a significant difference compared to DVD."
The overall attach rate is highest in Spain, where HD DVD owners have bought an average of 5.7 movies per player, which is over 14 times the attach rate for Blu ray (at just 0.4 per player).
The trend is consistent across Europe, with significantly higher movie sales per player for HD DVD:
Italy: HD DVD owners have bought an average of 4.4 movies each (11 times the Blu ray figure of just 0.4 per player).
France: HD DVD owners have bought an average of 5 movies each (over 8 times the Blu ray figure of just 0.6 per player).
Benelux: HD DVD owners have bought an average of 2.9 movies each (over 7 times the 0.4 movies bought by Blu ray owners)
Germany: HD DVD owners have bought an average of 2.9 movies each (which is over 4 times the 0.6 movies bought by Blu ray owners)
UK: HD DVD owners have bought an average of 3.7 movies each (which is over 4 times the 0.8 movies bought by Blu ray owners)
"The unique features available offered by HD DVD, such as picture in picture for video commentaries and in-movie bonuses, book-marking of favourite scenes and access to extra web-based content, continue to persuade consumers that this is the most engaging format available," said Eddie Cunningham, Chairman HD DVD EMEA Promotional Group. "These benefits have been reinforced by all HD DVD supporting companies and explain why increasing numbers of movie watchers in Europe are choosing to watch their high definition content on HD DVD."
