Blu-Ray sales rocket after Wall-E wins Oscar

Disney’s Wall-E has rocketed into the record books to become the biggest selling animated Blu-ray Disc of all time. According to figures released today, Blu-ray Discs have accounted for more than one in ten of Wall-E sales, beating the Blu-ray sales of box office hits such as Mamma Mia!, Ratatouille and Kung Fu Panda.

It’s the latest accolade for the hugely popular film, which scooped an Oscar for Best Animated Feature at this year’s ceremony.

The demand for Wall-E, the loveable cleaning machine, has revealed a shift in the popularity of Blu-ray, as increasing numbers of film fans choose to purchase the format. Figures show that despite taking less at the box office, ten per cent more copies of Wall-E on have been sold on Blu-ray Disc than Mamma Mia, the biggest selling DVD of all time.

With Blu-Ray sales predicted to exceed 15m in 2009 and growing at a rate of over 300 per cent, Brits have been quicker to switch to the format than they were to relinquish the VHS. Recent sales figures have revealed that consumers are adapting to Blu-Ray much faster than when they made the change from VHS, and are purchasing family movies five months sooner on Blu-Ray than they during the DVD switch.

Chas Ort, Marketing Controller for Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, commented: “Once you see Wall-E in high definition, you can understand why it has outshone many other titles in the Blu-ray sales stakes. It looks phenomenal and the viewing quality has to be seen to be believed. We’re thrilled that a family title is doing so well with its Blu-ray sales. Our experiences with VHS and DVD suggest that once family titles such as Wall-E start selling well on new Blu-ray, it won’t be much longer before everyone is choosing Blu-Ray.”

Charles Fotheringham, HMV Head of Visual, says: "HMV has been a keen supporter of Blu-ray, which is becoming an increasingly popular format among our regular film & TV customers. We're finding that particular movies, which are action or animation based, have helped to broaden the appeal of the format in recent months, and Wall-E is certainly one of those tiles that is best appreciated in the high definition quality that only Blu-ray can really offer."