‘Yellowstone’ And Other Hot Titles Push 2021 Home Entertainment Spending To Record $32.3B; PVOD Hits $525M Minus Disney+ Premier Access

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Home entertainment spending (mostly streaming) posted a year-over-year increase of 8% to hit $32.3 billion in 2021, according to the Digital Entertainment Group.The fourth quarter showed particular momentum, with overall consumer spending up more than 11% from the same period in 2020 to reach $8.6 billion.

Electronic sell-through purchases, on-demand rentals and subscriptions rose 15% to $8 billion, not counting PVOD or Disney’s Premier Access.The industry consortium said the tally set a new record, and it noted it would be even higher with premium, day-and-date releases included.

For various reasons, the DEG does not include Disney+ Premier Access releases, which carry a $30 upcharge for subscribers. Disney has reported taking in $933 million from the release format in 2021, on top of theatrical proceeds, but that figure also includes pay-per-view events like UFC fights.Leaving Disney aside, the category the DEG labels “premium,” which is commonly referred to as premium video on demand, or PVOD, reached about $525 million last year.

The DEG noted a “lack of robust reporting” across the industry for PVOD, which complicates efforts to track and report the data for all companies.TV titles were especially potent in 2021, including all four seasons of Paramount Network smash Yellowstone.