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Online video poised to outsell DVD purchases this year

Believe it or not, the surge in online streaming options from Amazon, HBO, Netflix, Hulu and others have yet to outsell DVDs. That'll change this year, though. In a new report from consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, money spent on video downloads and streaming subscriptions in the States will surpass DVD sales and rentals for the first time in 2015. In terms of hard numbers, online video is set to increase 13 percent and rake in $9.5 billion while physical DVD sales are expected to drop to $7.8 billion. What's more, in 2017, the online sales figures are projected to hit the $12 billion mark, which would surpass the US box office tally for theaters. DVDs are hanging tough thanks in part to services like Redbox and Netflix's disc option, but the format stands to meet the same fate as CDs: Music streaming outsold physical CDs last year, and is poised to overtake digital sales within three years.