DVD boom in Europe

DVDs often contain trailers and behind-the-scenes footage

European sales of DVDs - discs which produce digital-quality images on TV - have shown a huge rise in the first half of 2001.

Germany has led the way, with a 176% increase in sales value from 2000 to 2001, says research institute GfK.

In the UK the British Video Association reported a rise in sales of 134% during 2000, bringing total DVD sales to 5.42 million.

France has also followed the European trend with DVD sales reaching 10 million in the first half of 2001 - a rise of 156% on 2000.

US sales

During the same period the number of homes in western Europe with DVD players has risen fourfold to 5.4 million, according to trade magazine Screen Digest and the International Video Federation.

VHS-owning households: Also increased in number

VHS-owning households have also grown slightly, to 124 million.

The figures follow news that US sales of DVD players are expected to double this year to about 13 million units, according to market research firm NPD Intelect.

A sign of the medium's increasing popularity is the recent announcement by video hire chain Blockbuster that it will be replacing 25% of its VHS video stock with DVDs in its 7,800 stores around the world.

DVDs, which also allow viewers to watch extra features such as trailers and behind-the-scenes footage, feature 550 lines of resolution compared with 240 lines of resolution for video cassettes, providing superior quality.