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The end of the DVD? Poor sales raise questions
Business digest: Hollywood may have to rethink its strategy following signs that the DVD is becoming obsolete
America has seen a 19 per cent drop in DVD sales and a 36 per cent decrease in high-street rentals during the first quarter of this year, in what may signal the beginning of the end for the format.
Rental shop Blockbuster is already undergoing bankruptcy proceedings, indicating that the negative trend that began in 2007 is still accelerating. According to the British Video Association, the UK is experiencing a similar trend as it enters "a period of change".
The news will worry Hollywood, which traditionally relies on DVD sales to make profits for movies, which frequently only break even on their theatrical releases.
But there are signs that online film streaming may be the way forward, as movie piracy fails to lift off in the same way as peer-to-peer music sharing.
Read a full report at the Guardian. ·
