New year rings in with increasing DVD domination.(Research: the numbers and what they mean)

Consumers sustained their DVD buying spree in the first few weeks of the year, while cassette sales continued to slide and rentals posted losses over last year.

While the box office strength of January releases was down 21.3 percent from the comparable 2003 slate, it didn't slow consumers' desires to own the titles on disc.

A review of the top 50 DVD sellers in the first three weeks of 2004 showed consumer disc purchases were up 13.5 percent from the comparable period last year, according to Nielsen VideoScan data. DVD buy rates are expected to remain steady