European Blu-Ray Sales Topple Expectations

According to recent reports, sales of Blu-ray titles in the United Kingdom reached 462,500 units in November, an increase of 165% over the previous month. Final December numbers won't be available until sometime next month, but initial data is promising, with the Blu-ray release of 'The Dark Knight' selling 513,000 units in one day. 

A total of 6.5 Million units have been sold in Europe to date (up 320%), with the market share expected to double next year to 6%. So far, roughly 800,000 stand-alone Blu-ray Disc players have been sold in Europe, but that number is expected to triple for next year, up to 2.5 Million. 

Jim Bottoms, Managing Director, Corporate Development, at Futuresource, commented, "The Blu-ray disc format offers an unparalleled home entertainment experience, something all those involved with this technology have always known. Once people see the benefits of Blu-ray for themselves, they soon realize the difference it can make. Seeing is believing after all! We fully expect Blu-ray to keep on bucking the current economic trend and continue its rapid growth over the next few months and beyond, stimulated by falling prices and even more bundling deals with large screen TVs."