Survey sees shift from buying to renting

DVDs still in demand as consumers use more home entertainment

By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 10/23/2008

OCT. 23 | In this economic downturn, consumers will likely scale back spending on relatively more expensive entertainment options, including DVD sales, according to Solutions Research Group.

However, consumers won’t abandon the category all together, but shift into cheaper options such as DVD rentals.

The most popular entertainment area to cut back is big-ticket events, such as concerts and sports, according to Solutions Research from surveying U.S. and Canadian households in mid-October.

Activities next mentioned for reduced spending, in descending order, are going out to theaters, DVD buying, magazine/newspaper renewal, cable, videogame buying, home phone and mobile phone.

DVD rentals and the Internet were singled out the least by survey respondents, and both are considered potential gainers in this tight environment.

One respondent said, “We could make better use of our Netflix account and spend less buying DVDs,” according to Solutions Research.

Another respondent noted, he or she would “wait until movies are on DVD. … The last time I went to the movies, a medium drink and popcorn was $12.”

For those consumers who continue to want to own movies, they’ll likely shift from buying new, full-priced DVDs to used and sale-priced titles, added Solutions Research.

The company’s overall assessment is that consumers will work to transition from out-of-home entertainment and maximize the in-home entertainment experience.

However, a significant amount of respondents, at 54%, said there is no negative economic impact on their household at this point. Just 15% report a big impact in the last three months. And 31% say there has been some impact but consider their situation manageable.