New Report: Internet Users Intrigued by Download-to-Burn (D2B)
Online Movie Services but Highly Price Sensitive
August 9, 2007 (Dallas, Texas) - Although significant demand for download-to-burn (D2B) DVD services has yet to materialize, new research from The Diffusion Group suggests that a sizeable portion of Internet users are interested in using such services. TDG’s latest report on new media models, The Appeal of Download-to-Burn DVD Services, reveals that 29% of adult Internet users are likely to purchase a movie download if it could be burnt to DVD. Only 6% indicated they “definitely would” purchase a D2B movie.
“D2B services are still very new, so this is encouraging news,” notes Michael Greeson, president of TDG and co-author of the new report. “Then again, translating interest for such a novel service into actual demand will be difficult, as is seen by the extent to which download time and price-per-title impact the appeal of D2B services.”
Greeson notes that consumers have been reluctant to purchase movie downloads because they usually require the user to watch the movie on a PC monitor, either because the PC is not networked with a TV or the digital movie file could not be burnt to a DVD and then “sneakernetted” into the living room for TV viewing. Download-to-burn services offer a way to get around these limitations and thus should prove more appealing to consumers when compared to simple movie download services. However, given that the number of titles available for D2B is extremely limited in both number and quality (new releases are not included), even vendors such as CinemaNow and Movielink who offer a D2B service have found uptake to be poor.
Other key findings of TDG’s new report include the following:
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While 49% of adult Internet users are to some extent familiar with online movie stores that offer downloads, less than 5% report having purchased a movie download;
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Not surprisingly, those most interested in D2B services are also the heaviest DVD buyers: on average, D2B intenders purchase 55% more movies than non-intenders;
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Price sensitivity for burn-to-download (B2D) is significant though reasonable given the nascence of the medium; and
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D2B intenders tend to be younger, less likely to be married, though better educated and more likely to live in higher-income households when compared to non-intenders.
TDG’s latest report on new media usage, The Appeal of Download-to-Burn DVD Services, features quantitative research and analysis based on a July 2007 survey of 1,500 U.S. Internet users. The report details consumer awareness and usage of online D2B services, and analyzes price sensitivity toward such services across multiple price points and download times.
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