Divx sales start slow-- "We sold 60 [in the region] the first day, then sales dropped off, but they've been picking up since," ...
Divx Sales Start Slow
(06/23/98; 4:15 p.m. ET)
By Gregory Quick & Doug Olenick, Computer Retail
Week
Two weeks after launching Divx players, Circuit City
stores are, not surprisingly, recommending the
technology over digital versatile disc (DVD), but sales
associates report sales have been mixed.
"We sold 60 [in the region] the first day, then sales
dropped off, but they've been picking up since," said an
associate at a San Mateo, Calif., store.
Computer Retail Week visited four San Francisco Bay
area Circuit City stores to inquire about DVD. Nearly
all sales associates attempted to step our shopper up to
a $499 Divx player from a $399 DVD unit.
Digital Video Express, which markets Divx, was
created and is financed by Circuit City.
Sales associates at the stores reported Divx sales, while
not setting the world on fire, have been slowly
increasing since the debut of the players earlier this
month.
Divx movies, which cost $4.50, provide 48 hours of
view time, starting when the disc is first accessed. After
that, customers can request, via the Divx player, to have
the disc temporarily or permanently unlocked for an
additional fee. This eliminates returns to the store, but its
features are not easily explained in a 30-second sales
transaction. DVD works on the videotape model, with
customers renting or buying movies outright.
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