They cut their own throat by making the Blu $2-$5 more than the DVD. Dumb, dumb, dumb. We skipped over it completely in our household and went straight to streaming.

I've heard that virtually 50% of new video sales are Blu-ray. People have slowed down their buying of DVD and only the die hards' (who have switched to Blu) are still buying the physical format.

$2-$5?? Until fairly recently it was more like $12-$15 more!

Part of my point above is that most pawn shops still haven't caught on to the price crash; around here most used BR's are still $10 in pawn shops, while all but new releases, Criterions, etc are $2-$5 used on Amazon. I've even the the occasional Major studio title on Blu for $5 brand new in the big box stores (BB, Target, etc).

I would love to see much more extensive use made of Blu-ray for audio.

Especially since even today, most people don't have the TVs or sound systems to even notice much of a difference. Does Blu-Ray sound any different than DVD coming out of a TV speaker?

Do you still have to hook a Blu-Ray player up to the internet in order to get it to work?

Do you still have to hook a Blu-Ray player up to the internet in order to get it to work?

I seriously doubt the MPAA can initiate remote shutdown of someone's Blu-Ray player or if they can see what disc you're watching. That's what firewalls are for.

Blu-ray is really only for those with home theaters that have large HDTV's. Hence why it hasn't taken off like DVD did.

For those who watch TV on an older set or under 40", Blu-ray is a non-factor.

If you watch Amazon's sales charts, BDs have parity with DVDs and often outsell them. The format is no danger. Rock-bottom prices on some titles are no different from the prices found for third party DVDs. Only collectibles and imports really command "good" prices anymore ... the competition has squashed everything else flat. Which I appreciate as a consumer (although I don't want Geff to go hungry).

I would love to see much more extensive use made of Blu-ray for audio.

I seriously doubt the MPAA can initiate remote shutdown of someone's Blu-Ray player or if they can see what disc you're watching. That's what firewalls are for.

DVD is ok but i do see degradation of the picture when I play a DVD instead of a Blu-ray. Blu is 10X better video wise than DVD. Especially with a large TV. The drop in picture quality is quite high.

I bought a HDTV to watch HD so Blu for me is the way to go. DVD is almost analog in comparison.

The NPD Group: Consumers Still Positive on Blu-ray

Port Washington, NY (PRWEB) June 08, 2011

The NPD Group, a leading market research company, today announced that there has recently been significant and healthy growth in the purchase and use of Blu-ray Disc set top boxes and Blu-ray video content in the U.S. Based on information from NPD’s latest update to the “Entertainment Trends in America” report, 15 percent of U.S. consumers reported using a Blu-ray player in the prior six months in March 2011, up from 9 percent the prior year. By way of comparison, 57 percent of U.S. consumers reported using a standard DVD player in 2010, which is unchanged from 2009. According to NPD’s “Blu-ray Disc Report," 49 percent of PS3 owners are viewing Blu-ray movies on their game consoles at least once a month, which is also adding to the base of physical-disc users. Year-over-year sales of set-top Blu-ray player units increased 16 percent.

According to NPD’s “Blu-ray Disc Report,” there is evidence that Blu-ray is beginning to offset the loss of DVD customers. NPD estimates there are currently 116 million physical disc buyers in the US, which is down from 128 million in 2009; however, the nearly 26 million Blu-ray buyers helped keep that number from sliding further. Blu-ray buyers are also beginning to buy more discs than they did in 2009 or 2010, including both new releases and older catalog content.

“Because fewer hot titles came out of the theatres in time for first quarter release, the physical video-disc market was a bit disappointing -- especially coming off of a good first quarter last year; but consumer response to the Blu-ray format remains strongly positive, said Russ Crupnick, entertainment industry analyst for NPD. “While Blu-ray may not be the replacement for DVD that many once hoped for, it is certainly adding strength to the physical video-disc market. This added stability is helping to extend the life of discs, even as digital options gain in popularity.”

Consumer feedback from NPD’s video research points to recognition of Blu-ray’s technology advantages, increasing value proposition, and benefits from packaging (e.g., combo packs that offer a DVD, Blu-ray and Digital Copy). Eight out of 10 current and prospective owners of Blu-ray set top boxes cite high definition quality and technology as the reason they purchased, or intend to purchase, a Blu-ray player.

Consumers are also noticing the better pricing and value of Blu-ray, as prices of hardware have declined. Word of mouth is helping grow the Blu-ray customer base, as well. Thirty-six percent of consumers who intend to buy a player were influenced by the product recommendations of friends and family members.

“It wasn’t too long ago that most consumers felt DVD was ‘good enough,’ and while it’s true DVD is a terrific format, more consumers are now recognizing that Blu-ray does indeed deliver a superior experience,” said Crupnick. “Certainly the fact that prices are now within the budgetary range acceptable to rank-and-file consumers is helping bolster the overall value proposition of the Blu-ray format.”

In addition to the positive feedback on Blu-ray discs, NPD notes that digital services have also driven increased interest in Blu-ray players. In fact 50 percent of consumers who intend to buy Blu-ray set-top players in the next six months cited the desire to use available subscription video download services as a primary reason.

“As more and more buyers make the decision to obtain the superior picture and sound technology of Blu-ray, there is also more awareness that the same player that delivers that experience can also provide access to digital services that are gaining the attention of American consumers,” Crupnick said.

Data note: Information in this press release was derived from two online consumer tracking studies conducted in 2011: “Entertainment Trends in America” and “Blu-ray Disc Report.” Final data for the nationally representative sample in the “Blu-ray Report” was weighted to represent the U.S. population of adults age 18 and older. Information in “Entertainment Trends in America” report represents the U.S. population age 13 and older.