Studios that have seen sales of DVDs plummet in recent years -- particularly since the beginning of the recession in early 2008 -- finally got some good news in a report by Digital Entertainment Group (DEG), the industry-funded company that promotes and tracks home entertainment usage. In a new report, DEG said that a surge in sales of Blu-ray discs and increased spending on Internet-delivered movie rentals and sales fueled an overall 4.87 percent increase in home entertainment spending in the third quarter to $4 billion. "This growth reflects an encouraging shift in the marketplace," the report said. While noting that while rentals at brick-and-mortar outlets like Blockbuster plunged nearly 29 percent to $353 million, sales of Blu-ray disc players (including game devices that can play the discs) soared 58 percent, and spending on online video services grew 55.79 percent to $811 million.

01/11/2011