March 15, 2011 at 1:45 PM ET
Have you streamed or downloaded a digital movie the legal way lately? Then odds are high that you did so via Netflix. Six out of ten movies streamed or downloaded online apparently go through that media service.
The NPD Group, a market research company, used the VideoWatch Digital tracking service to determine how digital movies are being delivered to customers. Based on the 10,618 completed surveys used as part of that service, it seems that Netflix has quite a lead on the competition:
Netflix’s share of digital movie units, downloaded or streamed, reached 61 percent between January 2011 and February 2011, followed by Comcast at 8 percent, and a three-way tie for third at 4 percent among DirecTV, Time Warner Cable, and Apple. Based on information from NPD’s new VideoWatch Digital tracking service, digital video now makes up one quarter of all home video volume.
The folks from NPD find it worth noting that while digital movie delivery options are becoming increasingly popular, "sales of DVDs and Blu-ray Discs still drive most home-video revenue."
That means that while a legally streamed or downloaded movie probably came into your home via Netflix, movies in general are still more likely to get there on old-school media formats.
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Rosa Golijan writes about tech here and there. She's a bit obsessed with Twitter, loves to be liked on Facebook, and streams a cheesy romantic comedy via Netflix each weekend.