Blu-ray Sales: Mission did the Impossible
May 2, 2012
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol led all new releases topping the Blu-ray sales chart with an impressive debut of 1.34 million units / $29.51 million. Its opening week Blu-ray share was an outstanding 67%. As a result of this fantastic opening, I'm making a bold prediction. By the end of the year, a summer blockbuster will open with a Blu-ray share of 75%.
War Horse was miles back with 99,000 units / $2.96 million for the week giving it totals of 536,000 units / $14.44 million after three. Frozen Planet opened in third place with 63,000 units / $2.19 million, which was enough for a 49% opening week Blu-ray share. Normally, TV on DVD releases struggle on Blu-ray, but this was a nature documentary, and this particular genre tends to do well. Even so, 49% is impressive. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo remained in fourth place with 62,000 units / $1.25 million for the week. After more than a month of release, the film has sold 955,000 units and generated $19.56 million in sales. Mission: Impossible: Trilogy Box Set returned to the chart in fifth place with 60,000 units / $3.10 million.
The best of the rest of the new releases was Shame, which placed seventh with 48,000 units / $1.30 million. It only came out on a Blu-ray Combo Pack, so there's no Blu-ray share to look at. Born to be Wild was right behind in eighth place with 47,000 units / $1.31 million giving it an opening week Blu-ray share of 47%, which is excellent for a documentary. The final new release to chart was The Princess Diaries: Double-Pack, which placed 14th with 34,000 units / $1.34 million.
The overall Blu-ray sales were a momentous leap up from last week and from last year. Sales were 151% higher than last week, both in terms of units and dollars, which is meteoric growth. There were 29% more units sold when compared to last year, which generated 49% more revenue. On the other hand, DVD sales were marginally higher than last week, but they plummeted compared to last year. This helped the overall Blu-ray share reach 49% in terms of units and 57% in terms of dollars. With nearly all of the winter blockbusters already out on the home market, this share will likely fall. But expect Blu-ray sales to break the 50% barrier again during the Christmas shopping season.
Speaking of a falling Blu-ray share, next week Blu-ray prospects are far from great with only one first-run release generating any real buzz. Contraband should sell well on Blu-ray when compared to DVD, but weak compared to Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol. On the other hand, last year's new releases were a disaster on both DVD and Blu-ray, meaning 2012 should earn a pretty easy win on the year-over-year comparison.
Filed under: Video Sales, The Princess Diaries, The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, War Horse, Mission: Impossible—Ghost Protocol, Shame, Contraband, Born to be Wild 3D