US DVD sales plummet 20% - Mark Sweney

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/may/03/us-dvd-sales-online-tv

DVD sales plunged 20% in the US in the first quarter of 2011, with Hollywood studios blaming the timing of Easter and a glut of blockbuster releases in the same period last year for the $500m (£303m) year-on-year revenue slump.

The sale of DVDs and Blu-ray discs fell from $2.58bn to just more than $2bn in the first three months of the year, according to a report by industry body the Digital Entertainment Group. The DEG study also found rentals of DVDs through outlets such as Blockbuster plunged 36% year on year to $440m.

However, consumer spending on streaming and subscription services such as Netflix rose 33% to $695m

I don't know for sure but I suspect that the market will shrink the need for DVDs but they will not disappear altogether. I don't mean that they will phase out like VHS, I mean that there seems to be a need and a desire to have something portable and something to display. You can't carry that copy of The Little Mermaid with you on vacation if its only on the DVR and there's no way for you to "flaunt" your exacting taste in movies if they are just on your hard drive. There has to be natural level of consumption for DVDs, as they are right now the most ideal technology for portable entertainment. I could be wrong but I think the market is seeking that natural level of consumption.