For Immediate Release:

ANNUAL REPORT ON THE HOME ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY PROVIDES INSIGHTS ON CONSUMER ATTITUDES TOWARDS DVD PURCHASES AND RENTALS AND VIDEO GAME PLAY

ENCINO, CA (July 27, 2009) … The = 2009 Annual Report on the Home Entertainment Industry, which was released today = by the Entertainment Merchants Association (EMA), provides revealing insights = on consumer attitudes towards video game play and DVD purchases and rentals. T= hese insights includes, for example, data demonstrating that:

·= ; = Once= a person becomes a video gamer, he or she will remain a video gamer indefinit= ely, rendering the industry essentially turnover-proof.<= /o:p>

·= ; = Desp= ite the tremendous growth of alternative channels for video rental, such as dig= ital downloads, online subscription rental services, and DVD rental kiosks, brick and mortar stores continue to dominate the market.

·= ; = Sales of Blu-ray Discs increased 300% last year, demonstrating that the high-definition discs are taking hold with consumers.

“Despite the year’s difficu= lt economic climate, consumers continued to purchase, rent, and download home entertainment in impressive numbers,” noted EMA President and CEO Bo Andersen. “Regardless of the strong interest in alternative channels = of delivery, demand remains for great entertainment on every platform, and the industry has demonstrated that they can meet the demand long into the future.”

The 2009 Annual Report on the Home Entertainment Industry details that consumer spending on Internet downloads increased 15% from 2007 to total $141.8 million last year, online subscript= ion rental services are now 25% of the market, and DVD rental kiosks have a 6% market share, up from 2% in 2007. Yet despite the impressive growth of these new channels of video rental, the rental market continues to be dominated by traditional brick-and-mortar rental stores, which had 69% of the rental mar= ket in 2008.

The report also details the increasing importance of Blu-ray Discs to the sell-through market. The report, relying= on studio estimates, declares that Blu-ray sales totaled $750 million in 2008,= up from the Blu-ray Disc Associations’ estimate of $170 million in 2007.= The more-than-four-fold increase confirms that consumers are fully embracing the high-definition discs.

Data cited in the report indicates that consumer turnover in the video game market is exceedingly low. Older gamers continue to be engaged by video games, rather than dropping out and being replaced by a new generation. Once a consumer decides to play video games, = they continue to play for life – adding to the growing number of gamers worldwide. =

Other highlights of the 2009 annual rep= ort include:

•= Video game software sales reached $11.7 billion in 2008 – a 22.9% jump over 2007.

•= Video game rentals for 2008 totaled $541 million – an 8% increase over 2007= .

•= Video game hardware sales in 2008 totaled $7.81 billion – up 11% from 2007.=

•= In 2008 spending for video game hardware, software and accessories totaled $22= .9 billion – an increase of 19% over 2007.

•= Sixty-eight percent of American households play video console or computer games.

•= Consumers spent $22.4 billion buying and renting DVDs and Blu-ray Discs in 2008.=

•= DVD and Blu-ray sales totaled $14.9 billion – an 8% decline from 2007. Rental of DVD and Blu-ray remained= flat at $7.5 billion.

•= Blu-ray Disc software accounted for 3% of consumer disc spending in 2008. Blu-ray D= iscs are projected to reach half of consumer disc spending by 2013.

•= Home video software spending is projected to decrease slightly through 2011 and = then grow modestly through 2013.

The 2009 Annual Report on the Home Entertainment Industry provides comprehensive data on and analysis of sales= and rentals of DVDs, Blu-Ray Discs, video on demand, computer and console video games, and competing technologies. It is widely used by financial analysts, home entertainment industry executives, journalists, and others who want to understand the current state of the industry and its future prospects. The report may be purchased from the Entertainment Merchants Association online= at www.EntertainmentMerchantsAssociation.org or by phone at 818-385-1500.=

The Entertainment Merchants Association (EMA) is the not-for-profit international trade association dedicated to advancing the interests of the $33 billion home entertainment industry. EMA represents approximately 300 companies throughout the United States, Canada, and other nations. Its members operate approximately 27,000 retail outlets = in the U.S. that sell and/or rent DVDs, computer and console video games, and digitally distributed versions of these products. Membership comprises the = full spectrum of retailers (from single-store specialists to multi-line mass merchants, and both brick and mortar and online stores), distributors, the = home video divisions of major and independent motion picture studios, and other related businesses that constitute and support the home entertainment indus= try. EMA was established in April 2006 through the merger of the Video Software Dealers Association (VSDA) and the Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association (IEMA).

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[EDITOR: Journalists may obtain complementary copies of the Annual Report by contact= ing Grace Lee at 818-385-1500 x244 or glee@entmerch.org.]

For more information, please contact:

Sean Bersell, Vice President, Public Affairs

Entertainment Merchants Association (EMA)

818-728-8663 or sbersell at entmerch.org