Blu ray is doing well even during the slow season

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

Well we know you're not interested in anything that doesn't agree with your world-view, but for the rest of the posters here and the OT, I think it's pertinent.

You cannot speak for other posters, you can only speak for yourself. That is something you really should get into your thick head.

Hey don't feel too bad, since it talks about arrogance, selfishness, and greed, most of it does pertain to you.

You know nothing about me nitwit.

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

In Japan Blu ray has a wider market penetration than the US. HD DVD never found traction there, and DVD sales are falling like a rock. They purchase almost as many Blu ray discs as we do(they are in region 1 along with the US), and their population is a lot smaller. Sales of Blu ray recorders are jumping three figures year over year. They have a lot of Blu ray accessories that we do have here such as burners, 3D recorders and at least 1000 more Blu ray titles than we have. They also watch an insane amount of television as well. Blu ray is huge in Japan.

The amount of people using mobile devices for video is a lot higher as well. However much like here, it is short video's and television programming because the Japanese also spend an enormous amount of time watching television at home. They use their cell phones and mobile devices more for gaming and texting than for video. Gaming on phones is HUGE in Japan, especially among the young.

They also have a higher penetration of HDTV flat panels than we do(something in the neighborhood of 80%). They use Blu ray recorders, we use Tivo. The PS3 is huge there and so are its peripherals. They have a USB based HD television tuner, and a HD DVR kit for it, we are not likely to get either here.

As far as downloading movies, rentals are growing, but just like everywhere else, digital sell through is under the radar. Much like here, the Japanese like to own physical media for their movies more than a digital file.

Unlike the US, Japan embraces technology quicker, and has more of it. However if you were looking for a downloading and viewing movies silver bullet for mobile devices, you are barking up the wrong tree. Gaming is the rage there, and video is a distant second.

[Woochifer]

The amount of people using mobile devices for video is a lot higher as well. However much like here, it is short video's and television programming because the Japanese also spend an enormous amount of time watching television at home. They use their cell phones and mobile devices more for gaming and texting than for video. Gaming on phones is HUGE in Japan, especially among the young.

The factor to consider with mobile devices is the usage pattern and where things have been headed. Portable gaming and music migrating over to smartphones is a plausible scenario simply because consumer behavior has been trending in that direction for decades.

On the gaming side, handheld gaming devices have sold in the millions since the days of Mattel Football. Gaming on a mobile phone is a simple outgrowth of a logical progression that went from the original Gameboy to the modern PSP and Nintendo DS platforms. People are already in the habit of using handheld devices for gaming, and the devices are widely accepted in the market.

On the music side, same thing. Since the early experiments with dash-mounted record players, audio has persistently moved in the direction of mobility. Dating all the way back to the introduction of the Sony Walkman, personal audio devices have increasingly dominated the audio market, along with the rise of the car audio market. Right now, the iPod alone generates 3X more revenue than the entire home audio component industry combined. Consumers have been in the habit of listening to their music on small portable devices. Migrating over to mobile phones would be consistent with consumer behavior and existing trends.

Video is the exact opposite. Every attempt to market portable video playback devices has met with lukewarm sales. Casio and Sony might have sold thousands of portable TV devices, but those sales paled in comparison to what they were selling on the audio side. All of the viewing studies indicate high usage of mobile and online video (Nielson's 2009 study found that over 50% of households watch online video regularly), but they indicate that viewing time remains very limited. Unlike audio, where primary listening has shifted away from the living room in a huge way, the trends on the video side have only reinforced the central TV as the primary viewing choice.