Surprise: iTunes Leads In Video Too

When it comes to a viewing audience, there's no service bigger than YouTube, but when it comes to video sales, it appears to be an iTunes kind of world. That's from the latest info online research company NPD Group, which released a new report on the subject last week.

As more content owners struggle to monetize their catalogs, iTunes is increasingly leading the way. According to the study of the 2012 video business, iTunes had:

• 67% of TV show online sales
• 65% of online movie sales
• 45% of video rentals

As you can see from the chart on the left, iTunes dominates even Amazon in this regard. When it comes to rentals though, the race is a bit closer with Amazon accounting for 18%, Vudu for 15%, and XBox video at 14%.

None of this should be a surprise, although it seems to be. First of all, iTunes was the first mover in the download sales area and enjoys dominance in music, but when you factor in the proliferation of iOS devices like iPhones and iPads (which are excellent for watching video), you have an ecosystem that supports the distribution arm. Just as Apple planned it.

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