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Media
Information > Media DVD Coverage 
Archive
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| Updated November 3, 2004 DVD
NEWS DIGEST
1 -
Star Wars Trilogy (Widescreen 4 Pack) FoxVideo
The appeal of recordable DVD for small businesses is based on three factors: 1) Small business-appropriate pricing for both the drives and media; 2) The comfort level of optical disc technology based on the familiarity with CD-based backup; and 3) The versatility of DVD to support multiple applications in addition to data backup, such as video, photos, graphics, and audio storage. The escalation of small businesses jumping on the DVD backup bandwagon in record numbers is a result of it being both affordable and a familiar consumer technology. A recent survey by InfoStor magazine revealed that 73 percent of those using recordable CD as a backup medium are evaluating upgrading to recordable DVD with its 4.7 gigabyte capacity, taking advantage of an almost 7x capacity boost in the same compact form factor. The acceptance of DVD backup is evidenced by the leading backup software vendors that have added recordable DVD support to their small business backup applications.
A reviewer writes that the DVD Audio 5.1 surround system provides "audio quality like I’ve never heard before in a vehicle of any price. The system thunders through the DVD-A version of a rock album, yet the delicacy of a good Strauss waltz is also reproduced beautifully and faithfully." The lovely "live" ambience is made possible by the 5.1 surround system, he writes, "something you can’t really get with a CD regardless of how many speakers there are and where they’re mounted. "I loved the sound, I loved the convenience and the seamlessness of its functionality, and I loved being able to bring my new, high resolution audio discs on the road with me."
Nearly two-thirds of consumers usually favor large scale outlets when stocking up on home entertainment, according to Video Store Magazine’s 2004 Consumer Home Entertainment Study of 600 DVD households. Women were more likely than men to buy their DVDs at mass merchant or club stores, perhaps because of the convenience factor of a one-stop shop. More than 70% of women surveyed said they generally buy their DVDs at mass merchant or club stores, compared to 57% of men. Just 4% of DVD households primarily buy their discs online. Online DVD purchasers tend to be older than consumers who purchase discs through traditional channels, perhaps suggesting that online purchasers do not need the instant gratification of product in-hand. Nearly two-thirds of online DVD buyers are 40 years old or older. Consumers who only buy discs were more likely to purchase online than consumers who also rent. Only 2% of consumers who rent and buy purchase discs online, while 9% of those who only buy purchase online.
Music sales worldwide fell 1.3% to $13.9bn in the first half of 2004, compared with a 10.7% value slide in the first half of 2003, the slowest rate of decline in four years. "There are some signs that the world's markets are beginning to recover, boosted by the continued growth of DVD music video, digital sales and added-value releases," an industry executive said. Although
the amount of legal music downloading has surged, it is not expected
to contribute significantly to global sales figures for years.
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