Abstract
This study examines the association between user ratings and the number of days it takes to sell a product. We used two different types of user rating measures: valence (mean user rating) and volume (total number of ratings). The goal is to determine whether consumer ratings of a movie, TV series, or documentary impact DVD sales and, in particular, whether these two measures have the potential for predicting the time it takes for a new DVD to sell. The study also hopes to shed more light on the contradictory results found for the role of valence and volume of user ratings in predicting sales. The findings suggest valence is a useful predictor of the time to sell, while volume is not. General implications of the pathway of influence of user ratings on DVD sales are discussed.