With Blu-ray Disc the high-definition winner, it will no longer have to play in any sort of numbers race against a competing format. Still, that does not prevent tracking firms from keeping tabs on the gradual growth of the format.

Particularly since the beginning of 2008, when the writing was freshly written on the wall thanks to Warner Bros., Blu-ray Disc sales have picked up the pace considerably. According to Hollywood in Hi-Def, HMR research figured that Blu-ray Disc movie sales hit the 3 million mark in the first 11 weeks of this year. Should the pace continue, the format should hit at least 15 million units for 2008.

To put things into perspective, only 6 million Blu-ray Disc movies were sold since the format’s inception through 2007. While the growing number of players on the market directly affects software sales, consumers may now be willing to purchase more software with HD DVD out of the picture.

Helping push Blu-ray Disc to the nine million total mark as of mid-March was Miramax’s recent release of No Country For Old Men. Spurred by its Oscar win for Best Picture, No Country For Old Men sold 68,000 units within its first week of release – twice as many as the second best-selling Blu-ray Disc movie, Hitman.