What year did DVD pass VHS in sales?

Considering DVD players only hit the U.S. in 1997, it's sort of amazing how quickly consumers made the switch. There were a few things at play (cost, convenience, and the fact that DVDs only took up like a third of the space), but I don't think we can overestimate the importance of Sony's PlayStation 2 in the takeover. With a built-in DVD player, backwards compatibility, and a launch price of $299, there's a reason it's the best-selling console in the world. For many homes across the U.S., Sony's PS2 was such an affordable way to play DVDs that the gaming part was just a bonus. So it's no surprise that in 2002 Sony sold four million PS2s in the U.S. during November-December, and DVD sales finally surpassed VHS. While DVDs dominated the "buy it and own it forever" crowd, Blockbuster customers kept grabbing VHS tapes off the shelves until March 2003, when DVD rentals finally started bringing in more weekly cash than their magnetic tape competitors.