‘Martian’ Sets Digital Record
According to 20th Century Fox, director Ridley Scott’s “The Martian” has become the fastest-selling live-action Digital HD title, with sales of 1 million copies since its release three weeks ago. It was also the best-selling live-action Digital HD title in its first week of release.
That’s impressive when you consider that combined DVD and Blu-ray sales for a boxoffice hit ranges from 1 to 5 million units sold. Streaming, of course, had hit home video packaged goods pretty hard, with Blu-ray/DVD sales dropping about 11 percent in 2014; streaming jumped 25 percent while digital sales jumped more than 30 percent. Figures for 2015 have yet to be revealed but most likely will show further declines in DVD and Blu-ray sales as electronic delivery soars.
And wait until “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” hits the digital frontier: iTunes, Google Play, Barnes & Noble and Target, among other outlets, are now taking pre-orders for digital copies — even though a release date has not been set. May the numbers be with you.
