A new report by Centris, a market intelligence firm, shows that 17 percent of American homes have a Blu-ray player as of July 2010. This number has doubled since 2008, primarily on the back of Sony’s Trojan horse console, the PlayStation 3. Netflix, the next closest competitor, boasts a U.S. penetration of 15 percent, having made itself available on all major consoles.
According to the report, 20 million U.S. homes own a Blu-ray player and a DVD player. 45 percent of owners have a standalone Blu-ray player, but 47 percent watch films on a PlayStation 3. This gap is far smaller than the PlayStation 3’s original 2:1 ownership ratio when compared to standalone players. Centris’ report suggests that Sony’s strategy to push Blu-ray heavily with the PS3 has borne fruit.
DVD remains the primary format for video rental, despite challenges from Blu-ray, NetFlix, Amazon, and iTunes. However, Blu-ray owners have more robust video consumption rates. They not only rent and buy discs with higher frequency, but they are also more likely to own an HDTV and home console. 75 percent of Blu-ray owners own HDTVs and consoles, versus 62 percent of DVD player owners.
The report explains that Blu-ray will have to grow beyond the PlayStation 3 platform if it wants to truly grow.
And what about the growing specter of video-on-demand, with Apple TV, Amazon On Demand, and standalone streaming equipment like Boxee? 84 percent of Blu-ray households have a broadband connection, up from 65 percent of DVD owning households. 25 percent of Blu-ray owners watched and purchased a video-on-demand item in the last 30 days, compared to a mere 15 percent of DVD owners. These new services have a way to go before becoming commonplace.
