Digital Movie Buys, Rentals Up as Consumers Add Streaming Devices, Says NPD

Digital movie purchases and rental transactions grew 19 percent in first-half 2018, riding the wave of connected TV and streaming video, reported NPD Tuesday. As of August, 61 million U.S. households had at least one internet-connected TV, videogame console, Blu-ray Disc player or streaming media player, for a year-on-year growth of 20 percent for connected TVs and 17 percent for streaming media players. Apple iTunes users had the highest purchase percentage (60 vs. 40 percent rental), which NPD attributed to “affluence” of Apple customers and a desire to build a digital video collection. Vudu had a purchase-to-rental ratio of 55 to 45 percent, while Amazon flipped proportion, showing a higher rental ratio at 56 vs. 44 percent. Google Play had a 70-30 rental-to-purchase ratio and Microsoft Movies split 77-23 percent in favor of rentals. Results were based on a July 30-Aug. 7 survey of 5,677 U.S. adults, from diverse regions and demographical backgrounds, it said.