Apple’s iTunes has grabbed more share in the online movie market.
iTunes’ share of U.S. consumer spending for movie electronic sell-through (EST) and Internet video on demand climbed to 65.8 percent in the first half of the year, according to IHS, the market research and advisory firm. That marked iTunes’ first increase in share in two years.
EST is a method of media distribution in which consumers pay a one-time fee to download a digital media file for storage to a hard drive.
Wal-Mart’s Vudu also saw gains in the first half of the year: Its share of EST and Internet video on demand movie revenues rose to 5.3 percent, up from 1 percent during the same period in 2010. Vudu climbed to the No. 3 position behind Microsoft Zone Video Marketplace (16.2 percent) and ahead of Sony PlayStation Store (4.4 percent) and Amazon (4.2 percent), IHS said.
“Vudu’s gains were driven by several factors, including its shrewd device strategy, a good customer experience, a compelling user interface and its $1/$2 rental pricing system," said Arash Amel, IHS’ research director of digital media, in a statement.
Vudu’s growth came at the expense of Sony, whose market share declined from 8.2 percent in the first half of 2010.
“The PlayStation Store fell out of the Top 3 rankings chiefly because Vudu cannibalized its market share," Amel said. “Furthermore, the global security breach that shut down Sony’s online gaming operations during a major portion of the first half had a deleterious impact on the PlayStation Store’s business."
