A recent consumer study commissioned by  Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC) and conducted by research firm Vanson  Bourne found that having to choose which photo or video to delete to free up  storage space, and then regretting doing so, is a bona fide #firstworldproblem.

The study, from  a survey of 5,000 consumers across the UK, France, Germany and the United States,  analyzes how people create, consume, share and store digital content. Key  findings include: 

• Over 76 percent of  respondents aged 16 to 24 delete content to make space…and then regret it 
• The era of digital media has  arrived, and the end of the CD is near 
• Streaming of feature films  or TV shows is not taking over from digital ownership today 
• One in four say their  digital content is 'priceless', while the rest place the average value at  approximately $5,500 USDSacrificing Content

Despite one in four saying their digital  content is 'priceless', sacrificing a picture or video is a regular occurrence.  Of those that took the survey: 

• Nearly one fifth (19 percent)  of consumers have deleted a photo or video to make room on their device, and  regretted this all of the time 
• This figure is over one quarter  (27 percent) when looking at a younger group of 16 to 24 year olds 
• Similarly, 31 percent of the  16 to 24 age group say that they run out of space on their smartphones on a weekly  basis while 17 percent say this is a problem on a daily basis

"Running out  of storage space isn't the greatest challenge threatening mankind at the  moment, but it's certainly an annoyance for a great many consumers," said Jim  Welsh, executive vice president and general manager of Content Solutions at WD.  "Our findings clearly show that consumers are sacrificing precious memories and  valuable content to make more space on their devices."

Physical Ownership  vs. Digital Ownership

One reason for  the daily deletion of content could be the preference of digital forms of media  over physical forms of media.
  Of the respondents, 48 percent prefer digital versions of  music albums compared to 25 percent preferring the hard copy. 

• The same goes for films with  41 percent of respondents preferring a digital copy versus 29 percent for DVD 
• While streaming is becoming  popular, today it's not winning the battle over ownership, as for those who  prefer digital versions for watching feature films, 48 percent prefer digital ownership  to 29 percent preferring streaming

 With an  average of five music albums, five feature films and five television shows  being downloaded each week by the consumers in the study, it's clear a huge  amount of digital media is being consumed.
  "Our study  shows that 73 percent of consumers still buy technology based on price compared  to only 37 percent buy based on features, and we believe this is true for  external storage," said Welsh. "However, as consumers continue to be leading  more digital lifestyles and are forced to choose between which files to keep or  delete, we believe consumers will look for external storage solutions that  bring more value with features that help them store, share and backup their  digital content from mobile devices and computers."

Storage Needs    

The findings  support the notion that there is a disconnect among the majority of consumers  over how much digital content they consume and create and how much storage they  own and need. 

• Of those who have personal  storage only one in four respondents have external storage of 1 TB or more 
• Yet, 46 percent have 64 GB  or less as their total storage or back-up capacity on the device they use as  their primary means of storing content

 "Clearly,  attitudes towards storage purchasing have not yet caught up with appetites for  digital content," Welsh added. "It's incumbent on companies like Western  Digital to demonstrate to consumers how products like wireless hard drives,  network attached storage and personal clouds can help them quickly and easily  manage their digital lives and ensure they never have to delete a precious  memory again. We say to consumers, 'keep it coming!'"

This news release contains  forward-looking statements, including statements relating to the growth of  digital content, the increase in storage capacity necessary to handle such  digital content, and the need for storage products to be able to store such  digital content from a variety of devices. These forward-looking statements are  subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ  materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements, including  but not limited to, the risks detailed from time-to-time in our Securities and  Exchange Commission filings and reports, including, but not limited to, our  most recent annual report on Form 10-K to which your attention is directed.  Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking  statements, which speak as of the date hereof, and WD undertakes no obligation  to update these forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or  circumstances.