HD DVD beats Blu-ray on European movie sales

According to new figures released by the European HD DVD Promotional Group, HD DVD player owners in Europe have bought an average of 3.8 movies each, compared to Blu-ray player owners who bought just 0.6 movies each.

The figures were collated by GfK, an independent research group. GfK analysed the number of movies sold for all HD players, including standalone players and consoles, in the UK, France, Germany, Spain Italy and Benelux countries.

In the UK, HD DVD owners bought an average of 3.7 movies each, four times higher than the number bought by Blu-ray player owners, who bought an average of 0.8 movies each.

Spain recorded the highest rate, with HD DVD owners buying an average of 5.7 movies per player, while Blu ray owners bought only 0.4 movies each.

However, GfK included the PS3 in its statistics, which could be misleading, as the PS3 is predominantly a games console which is bought by many people who have no interest in watching Blu-ray movies.