Our DVD and Blu-ray sales estimates are based on weekly retail surveys, which we use to build a weekly market share estimate for each title we are tracking. The market share is converted into a weekly sales estimate based on industry reports on the overall size of the market, including reports published in Media Play News.

For example, if our weekly retail survey estimates that a particular title sold 1% of all units that week, and the industry reports sales of 1,500,000 units in total, we will estimate 15,000 units were sold of that title. The consumer spending estimate is based on the average sales price for the title in the retailers we survey.

We refine our estimates from week to week as more data becomes available. In particular, we adjust weekly sales figures for the quarter once the total market estimates are published by the Digital Entertainment Group. Figures will therefore fluctuate each week, and totals for individual titles can go up or down as we update our estimates.

Because sales figures are estimated based on sampling, they will be more accurate for higher-selling titles.

DVD and Blu-ray Releases for January 28th, 2014

January 28th, 2014

There are a large number of first run releases coming out this week on the home market, five in total. This is a huge amount. This week, the latest season of Downton Abby also comes out on the home market, and it is the best selling new release of the week, at least according to Amazon.com. So at the top, it is a really busy week. On the other hand, there's very little depth. Beyond those six releases, there's not a lot to talk about. Out of all of the movies on this week's list, Rush is the best movie, but the DVD and Blu-ray Combo Pack are only good and not great. On the other hand, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 on Blu-ray or 3D Blu-ray is the best total package. Meanwhile, I finally got a chance to review Carrie (the screener arrived late) and it was better than I thought it would be and the Blu-ray Combo Pack is worth picking up, especially if you haven't seen the original movie. More...

Featured Blu-ray / DVD Review: Carrie

January 26th, 2014

Carrie is a remake of of the 1976 film of the same name. The original Carrie is considered a classic horror film and the movie that brought Stephen King immense fame. Horror remakes have done poorly recently and this film was no different. However, was it a bad remake? Or has the public perception of horror remakes unfairly hurt this film at the box office? Does it do enough new to make it worth watching? Or is it yet another unnecessary remake? More...

DVD and Blu-ray Releases for January 14th, 2014

January 13th, 2014

There are a few first-run releases on this week's list of new DVD and Blu-ray releases. Riddick is the biggest, while You're Next is the best in terms of reviews. However, neither is truly Pick of the Week material. There are some contenders there, and in a strange coincidence, the two best feature Brie Larson: Short Term 12 on DVD or Blu-ray Combo Pack and The Spectacular Now on DVD or Blu-ray. It literally came down to a coin toss, but The Spectacular Now won. More...

Per Theater Chart: Hustle Speeds to the Top

December 17th, 2013

American Hustle started its box office run in limited release with a stunning average of $123,409. This is the second best per theater average for the year, behind only Frozen. Saving Mr. Banks opened in 15 theaters earning an average of $27,558. It should do well in its upcoming expansion. Inside Llewyn Davis expanded, playing in 15 theaters over the weekend while its per theater average fell to $23,786. It will continue to expand. The overall box office leader, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, was the final film in the $10,000 club earning an average of $18,869. More...

International Box Office: Fire Holds off the Freezing Cold

December 12th, 2013

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire again earned first place on the international chart, this week pulling in $42.9 million in 83 markets for a total of $340.6 million internationally and $676.5 million worldwide. The film had no major market openings this past weekend, not unless you count India, where the film made $703,000 on 613 screens. The film has already surpassed its predecessor and it has yet to open in Japan. $800 million worldwide is the current target, which is more than enough to cover this film's combined production and P&A budgets, and possibly the combined budgets for the next next two movies as well. More...

International Box Office: Hunger Games Continues to Burn Bright

December 5th, 2013

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire remained in first place on the international chart with $90.0 million in 79 markets for a total of $272.1 million. To put this into perspective, The Hunger Games finished with $276.5 million, so it is likely the sequel has already topped its predecessor internationally. The film opened in first place in France with $12.11 million on 755 screens. In comparison, The Hunger Games made $14.51 million in total in France, including $3.80 million during its opening weekend. The film also earned top spot in Italy with $5.05 million on 651 screens over the weekend for a total opening of $5.93 million. The original did poorly in that market with $1.29 million during its opening weekend and $3.83 million in total. Holdovers were led by the U.K., where it added $9.04 million on 557 screens over the weekend for a total of $35.36 million, or less than $2 million from its predecessor's total in that market. In Germany, the film pulled in $7.57 million on 670 screens over the weekend for a total of $24.63 million after two. The film film finished with $20.30 million in that market. More...

International Box Office: Thor 2 Overtakes Original

November 20th, 2013

Thor: The Dark World completed the hat trick earning first place for the third weekend in a row. It pulled in $52.5 million on 3,841 screens in 69 markets for totals of $332.8 million internationally and $477.9 million worldwide. This is already more than the original Thor finished with and possibly already enough to break even. (It depends on its global P&A budget.) The film had no major market openings this past weekend, but it did debut in first place in Argentina with $1.73 million on 256 screens. Its biggest market so far is China at $41.8 million, while Russia is second with $32.07 million. The film has yet to open in Italy and Japan, so it might hit a few more milestones. On the other hand, it will surrender top spot this weekend to The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. More...

Weekend Wrap-Up: Bad Grandpa Makes Box Office Look Good

October 29th, 2013

The month long slump 2013 has been on is finally over, thanks in part to Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa. However, the overall box office still wasn't that good, as it was down slightly from last weekend to $102 million. Granted, "slightly" in this case means a fraction of 1%, so it isn't troubling. On the other hand, it was 10% higher than the same weekend last year. Unfortunately, year-to-date, 2013's lead over 2012 has shrunk to just $50 million or 0.6% at $8.49 billion to $8.44 billion. In fact, 2013 has not sold less tickets than 2012 had at this point in its run. That's not good and it is unlikely things will turn around in the coming few weeks. More...

Weekend Predictions: How Bad Will the Box Office Be?

October 25th, 2013

So far October has been a bad month at the box office. Granted, Gravity should crack $200 million over the weekend; however, week after week after week we've seen declines in the year-over-year comparison. Will that losing streak finally end this weekend? We do have some good news. Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa should earn $30 million, more or less, easily topping the chart this weekend and earning much more than last year's number one film Argo. In fact, it might earn more than all four new releases from last year. Additionally, The Counselor isn't expected to be the biggest hit, but it still could earn more than Argo did this time last year and should earn more than the best new releases, Cloud Atlas, did. Are we finally going to see 2013's slump end? I really hope so, because 2013 is not that far ahead of 2012's pace and if the slump doesn't end soon, it could find itself slipping behind last year's pace. More...

Contest: Escape While You Can: Winning Announcement

October 22nd, 2013

The winner of our Escape While You Can contest was determined and it is... More...

Weekend Wrap-Up: Another Orbit for Gravity

October 22nd, 2013

As expected, Gravity remained on top of the weekend box office chart for the third weekend it a row. It became the first film released in 2013 to earn the hat trick, and very likely the last. Unfortunately, two of the three wide releases missed expectations, which hurt the overall box office numbers. Compared to last week, the overall box office was down by 11% to $103 million. Compared to last year, the box office was down 35%. Ouch. 2013 is still ahead of 2012's pace, but by less than 1% at $8.36 billion to $8.29 billion. More...

Weekend Estimates: Gravity Floats to Third Weekend Win

October 20th, 2013

Gravity will become the first film in 2013 to win three straight three-day weekends, according to studio estimates released on Sunday. With $31 million expected, the film is down just 28% from last weekend and has reached a formidable $170.5 million. That puts in in the top 10 for the year, with plenty more to come. Fellow Oscar-hopefuls 12 Years a Slave, All is Lost and Kill Your Darlins are the other films making waves this weekend (literally in one case). More...

Weekend Predictions: Will Gravity Remain Out of Reach of New Releases?

October 18th, 2013

There are two wide releases this week, Carrie and Escape Plan. However, neither film is earning critical praise and neither film is expected to be a breakout hit. There is a third film opening semi-wide, The Fifth Estate, but despite being clearly made for Oscars, its reviews are worse than the two more mainstream releases. It looks like Gravity will have no trouble earning the hat trick at the box office. It should also earn more than last year's winner, Paranormal Activity 4. Unfortunately, last year had much better depth than this year will have, so 2013 will likely lose yet again in the year-over-year comparison. More...

Contest: Escape While You Can

October 11th, 2013

Next week the wide releases are limited to Carrie and Escape Plan. Carrie hopes to perform better than most horror remakes manage; in other words, it hopes to become a midlevel hit, nothing more. Escape Plan could become one of the most expensive flops of the year, if some of the reports about its production budget are true. Since Carrie is expected to come out on top, it is the target film for this week's box office prediction contest. In order to win, one must simply predict the opening weekend box office number for Carrie. Whoever comes the closest to predicting the film's opening 3-day weekend box office (Friday to Sunday), regardless if they go over or not, will win a copy of White Collar: Season Four on DVD. Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay! More...

2013 Preview: October

October 1st, 2013

October is an awkward month. It sits between the dumping ground that is September and November, the unofficial start of Awards Season / holiday blockbuster season. For the most part, September was stronger than average for the month and there's reason to be optimistic going forward. After all, box office success tends to feed on itself, as does box office struggles. That said, there are not a lot of sure hits over the coming four weeks. Of the nine or ten films opening wide this month, only Gravity has a better than 50/50 chance at $100 million. Captain Phillips could have a shot at the century mark, but only if it becomes a serious Awards Season player. Its early reviews suggest that could be a possibility. Last October, there were two films to reach the $100 million mark, Taken 2 and Argo. On the other hand, pretty much everything else that opened that month crashed and burned. While this October doesn't have as strong a top end, it will hopefully have much better depth. More...