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A new report out of the US shows little let up in the spending habits of consumers with regard to technology and entertainment products.
New York-based market research company the NPD Group says US consumers are looking to spend the same amount or more on entertainment. This included 75 percent stating they would spend the same amount or more on digital music downloads, 65 percent would do the same re video games, while 60 percent were not cutting back on buying CDs.
In the consumer electronic market NPD reported 51 percent of consumers surveyed bought a DVD or Blu-ray disc in the past three months. Purchasing a console or portable video game ranked second at 36 percent, followed by purchasing a CD at 31 percent.
“Even in the face of a down economy, entertainment remains a popular spending category,” said Russ Crupnick, entertainment industry analyst for NPD. “Most consumers say they’ll continue to purchase at least the same amount of many entertainment categories in the coming year.”
According to “Entertainment Trends in America,” current per capita spending on entertainment in the U.S. is $160 per month, with the bulk of that spending going to dedicated subscriptions mostly related to TV and Internet access. Despite predictions that consumers would trim entertainment subscriptions, the only notable decline in spending NPD observed were for magazines and newspapers.
Locally, Sydney retailer Len Wallis, Managing Director for Len Wallis Audio is also optimistic about the next six months, if he can get stock that is. “It’s tough, but when we hear appear to be holding up reasonably well,” he said. “[With some vendors reducing inventory], for love nor money you can’t get a screen. People are coming in to buy, but I have even had to hold on to my show stock. I’m fairly confident about the next six months. It’s not going to be disastrous.”
