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DVDs Blu-ray disc rentals still surpass streaming

Streaming video may be cost-effective and convenient but consumers are still renting more movies via the mail and physical retailers.

People renting DVDs and ray discs through retail stores kiosks and Netflixs mail service totaled more than  percent of all movie rentals in the first half of the year according to NPD Group. In contrast, those renting digital movies via subscription streaming pay TV video on demand, and Internet VOD added up to only  percent.

Though physical discs still lead the rental landscape, their popularity has been waning. Rentals of DVDs and Blu-ray discs dropped by  New on DVD The Lorax. As brick-and-mortal video stores continue to fade away kiosks have taken their place with  percent of the physical rental market up  percent from last year.

Netflixs focus on streaming has also triggered a drop in physical rentals. The company recently announced that it had added streaming subscribers in the second quarter while losing customers of its DVD service.Overall digital movie rentals increased  percent over the first half of the year a rise that NPD attributed to the increased popularity of Netflixs Watch Instantly service. The companys streaming option accounted for  percent of all digital movie rentals. Pay TV video on demand took in  percent leaving Internet VOD withpercent.

Kiosk and subscription Internet streaming are generating strong user satisfaction ratings including future rental intent price and value which is reflected in market share gains NPD analyst Russ Crupnick said in a statement. Netflix is frequently the most popular video application on connected devices, so an increase in households with Web-connected Blu-ray disc players tablets, and smart TVs will lead to still more video streaming activity.