Home entertainment executives are ending the year in an upbeat mood, according to Home Media Magazine, despite increasing pressures from piracy and tightened consumer spending habits.  The connection to over-all consumer spending is actually seen as a positive, with a close correlation indicating that DVD sales declines (down 13% in the first nine months of the year) are more a reflection of a weak economy than a long-term change in consumer tastes.

Money spent on rentals increased substantially this year, especially through Redbox and Netflix, according to Rentrak numbers cited in the article. 

And Blu-ray sales are rising rapidly, with player penetration at a record level for a new technology introduction at this stage in its life cycle.  Within the Blu-ray category, Walmart is gaining share rapidly and is now running neck and neck with Best Buy, according to Video Business. 

So what’s good news for home entertainment execs is not necessarily good news for all—sell-through is losing share to rental, DVD is losing sales to Blu-ray, and the largest retailer of DVDs is taking share in Blu-ray.  But the decline in DVD sales is not the whole picture, and there are bright spots in the business.