Popularity of DVD Threatens to Eclipse Video - Britmovie

DB7 · 04-03-2004, 03:21 PM

LONDON (Reuters) - The popularity of DVDs is fast eclipsing that of the humble video in Britain with purchases of the newer format accounting for around 85 percent of movie sales in January, figures showed on Thursday.
The British Video Association (BVA) said the best-selling film in that month -- "Pirates of the Caribbean" -- sold 265,000 copies on DVD, compared with 52,800 on video.

DVD rentals of "Pirates" also outstripped those of video, with 328,900 DVDs rented, compared with 142,900 videos.

Director-general of the BVA, Lavinia Carey, said the growing popularity of the DVD was likely to continue owing to its "superior sound and picture quality" and "ease of use."

However, with just 41 percent of British households owning a DVD player, compared to 91 percent with a video player, the death knell of the video was not yet ready to sound, she said.

The BVA figures also showed that the top rental film last year was the Mel Gibson thriller "Signs," which achieved 2.2 million rentals across both formats.

It was closely followed by "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" which was rented 2.04 million times. In third place was "The Bourne Identity" with 1.99 million.

In sales, the "Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" beat "Harry Potter And The Chamber of Secrets" into second place last year, selling 3.8 million copies compared with 3.3 million.

Sales data were compiled for the BVA by the UK Official Chart Company, while the rental data were collected by entertainment research group MRIB.

DB7 · 08-03-2004, 05:17 PM

UK viewers are 'biggest DVD fans'

The second Lord of the Rings film was the UK's best-seller in 2003

Consumers in the UK spend more on DVDs than any other country in western Europe, industry research suggests. Almost three billion euros (Â£2bn) were spent in the UK on DVDs during 2003, according to research publication Screen Digest.

This compares with 1.7bn euros (Â£1.1bn) in France, and 963m euros (Â£645m) in Germany.

There are currently more than 50 million DVD players in western Europe - equivalent to one in every three homes.

By 2007, two out of three households in western Europe - or 110 million homes - will own the kit, research publication Screen Digest predicted.

DVD SPENDING 2003
UK - Â£2bn
France - Â£1.1bn
Germany - Â£645m
Netherlands - Â£305m
Spain - Â£295m
Source: Screen Digest

It took VHS players 20 years to reach the levels DVDs are predicted to hit in the decade since their launch in 1997.

The popularity of DVDs has seen them rapidly overtake VHS videos as the format of choice for watching films at home. By the end of 2007, 93% of all money paid for home films will be spent on DVDs, Screen Digest predicts.

Italy is predicted to be the biggest-grower among the main European markets between 2003 and 2007, with DVD spending expected to rise by 126%.

Yvonne · 08-03-2004, 07:23 PM

Sorry, I pressed the wrong button. My question (and it may be a very stupid one) is "Does the quality of the picture differ much if the DVD is played on a computer (large screen)"? I haven't a TV or a DVD machine so I use the slot on my computer. Apart from "The End of the Affair",which seemed to have been filmed through brown soup, it works well enough, but should I lash out on the real equipment?

deckard · 08-03-2004, 09:10 PM

What can I say?DVD should replace VHS,any form of magnetic tape recording is now outmoded,I understand that many people(including myself)have lots of films on VHS,but with DVD recorders dropping rapidly in price the time has come to move on.I have always worried about the reliability of tape,particularly,the dreaded"tape getting tangled in the machine syndrome"not to mention picture quality deterioration as the magnetic coating wears off.Yes,it was a great medium when there were no alternatives,but I for one,will invest in a DVD recorder,transfer all my VHS to DVD to halt any further loss of quality,reduce the storage space needed and finally(not I admit,without some fondness)say goodbye to VHS forever....I just hope the format system is standardised before too long.

Genevieve's Mechanic · 16-03-2004, 04:04 PM

Just for your amusement.
My Landlady had a strange format"video disk player" that was always going wrong,in particular it would make any character do a passable impression of "MAX HEADROOM" .this actually didnt matter too much in the scene in 2001 when HAL goes mad ,but it was a bit of a pain trying to watch "Modern times". It had to be loaded from a flat "cartridge" about 40cm square which was pushed into the front slot then withdrawn empty .half way through the movie you had to repeat the process but insert it upside down.
Eventually it stopped working altogether ,being a nosey sort I tried to revive it. First I got togged up in my welding gear including the face mask/goggles,to protect myself from stray laserbeams. bravely I opened the inspection hatch,and found ... a broken needle.!!!
disbelief led me to open one of the cartridges and sure enough there was a big shiney L.P. inside.
maybe some formats really are better than others.

Still with lp sized cartridges at least the cover art was worthwhile, with a readable list of credits.
so if anyone has a spare needle for a Hitachi
Vip 101p video disk player:-)

04-03-2004, 03:21 PM	#1
DB7 Administrator Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Shrops Posts: 5,757 My Mood: Country: iTrader: (10)	Popularity of DVD Threatens to Eclipse Video LONDON (Reuters) - The popularity of DVDs is fast eclipsing that of the humble video in Britain with purchases of the newer format accounting for around 85 percent of movie sales in January, figures showed on Thursday. The British Video Association (BVA) said the best-selling film in that month -- "Pirates of the Caribbean" -- sold 265,000 copies on DVD, compared with 52,800 on video. DVD rentals of "Pirates" also outstripped those of video, with 328,900 DVDs rented, compared with 142,900 videos. Director-general of the BVA, Lavinia Carey, said the growing popularity of the DVD was likely to continue owing to its "superior sound and picture quality" and "ease of use." However, with just 41 percent of British households owning a DVD player, compared to 91 percent with a video player, the death knell of the video was not yet ready to sound, she said. The BVA figures also showed that the top rental film last year was the Mel Gibson thriller "Signs," which achieved 2.2 million rentals across both formats. It was closely followed by "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" which was rented 2.04 million times. In third place was "The Bourne Identity" with 1.99 million. In sales, the "Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" beat "Harry Potter And The Chamber of Secrets" into second place last year, selling 3.8 million copies compared with 3.3 million. Sales data were compiled for the BVA by the UK Official Chart Company, while the rental data were collected by entertainment research group MRIB.

08-03-2004, 07:23 PM	#3
Yvonne Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 25 iTrader: (0)	Sorry, I pressed the wrong button. My question (and it may be a very stupid one) is "Does the quality of the picture differ much if the DVD is played on a computer (large screen)"? I haven't a TV or a DVD machine so I use the slot on my computer. Apart from "The End of the Affair",which seemed to have been filmed through brown soup, it works well enough, but should I lash out on the real equipment? __________________ Yvonne

08-03-2004, 09:10 PM	#4
deckard Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Cornwall Posts: 482 Country: iTrader: (0)	What can I say?DVD should replace VHS,any form of magnetic tape recording is now outmoded,I understand that many people(including myself)have lots of films on VHS,but with DVD recorders dropping rapidly in price the time has come to move on.I have always worried about the reliability of tape,particularly,the dreaded"tape getting tangled in the machine syndrome"not to mention picture quality deterioration as the magnetic coating wears off.Yes,it was a great medium when there were no alternatives,but I for one,will invest in a DVD recorder,transfer all my VHS to DVD to halt any further loss of quality,reduce the storage space needed and finally(not I admit,without some fondness)say goodbye to VHS forever....I just hope the format system is standardised before too long. __________________ "and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock"

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08-03-2004, 05:17 PM	#2
DB7 Administrator Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Shrops Posts: 5,757 My Mood: Country: iTrader: (10)	UK viewers are 'biggest DVD fans' The second Lord of the Rings film was the UK's best-seller in 2003 Consumers in the UK spend more on DVDs than any other country in western Europe, industry research suggests. Almost three billion euros (Â£2bn) were spent in the UK on DVDs during 2003, according to research publication Screen Digest. This compares with 1.7bn euros (Â£1.1bn) in France, and 963m euros (Â£645m) in Germany. There are currently more than 50 million DVD players in western Europe - equivalent to one in every three homes. By 2007, two out of three households in western Europe - or 110 million homes - will own the kit, research publication Screen Digest predicted. DVD SPENDING 2003 UK - Â£2bn France - Â£1.1bn Germany - Â£645m Netherlands - Â£305m Spain - Â£295m Source: Screen Digest It took VHS players 20 years to reach the levels DVDs are predicted to hit in the decade since their launch in 1997. The popularity of DVDs has seen them rapidly overtake VHS videos as the format of choice for watching films at home. By the end of 2007, 93% of all money paid for home films will be spent on DVDs, Screen Digest predicts. Italy is predicted to be the biggest-grower among the main European markets between 2003 and 2007, with DVD spending expected to rise by 126%.

16-03-2004, 04:04 PM	#5
Genevieve's Mechanic Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 47 iTrader: (0)	Just for your amusement. My Landlady had a strange format"video disk player" that was always going wrong,in particular it would make any character do a passable impression of "MAX HEADROOM" .this actually didnt matter too much in the scene in 2001 when HAL goes mad ,but it was a bit of a pain trying to watch "Modern times". It had to be loaded from a flat "cartridge" about 40cm square which was pushed into the front slot then withdrawn empty .half way through the movie you had to repeat the process but insert it upside down. Eventually it stopped working altogether ,being a nosey sort I tried to revive it. First I got togged up in my welding gear including the face mask/goggles,to protect myself from stray laserbeams. bravely I opened the inspection hatch,and found ... a broken needle.!!! disbelief led me to open one of the cartridges and sure enough there was a big shiney L.P. inside. maybe some formats really are better than others. Still with lp sized cartridges at least the cover art was worthwhile, with a readable list of credits. so if anyone has a spare needle for a Hitachi Vip 101p video disk player:-)