Physical & Digital EST: The Future of Home Video Discussion Thread

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Gotho(redux)

Okay, this is weird. Today, when browsing the forum, I noticed that everyone's avatar has stopped displaying. Tried viewing the forum in three different browsers and get the same result. Is this happening to anyone else or could it be something on my end?

It is a widespread issue. There's a thread about it in the Feedback forum:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=385057

[veritas]

Originally Posted by Maddox121

Honestly, if discs do fall in North America, it's not Hollywood's fault, it's Walmart's. Walmart is literally the one thing (besides boutique stores, which are basically novelties rather than mainstream stuff) keeping physical alive in North America... Best Buy gave up, Target limited their stock, Redbox is gone, Toys R Us is also gone, Circuit City is gone, all the rental stores are gone. I feel like if Walmart discontinues physical media sales, then it's basically over for North America. Heck, Walmart OWNS Universal and WB's North American physical divisions outright.

You could also mention Amazon, but... that doesn't count, since if people wanted to directly buy rather than stream movies online, they'd just buy them off VUDU or whatever rather than wait a few days for a disc to arrive in the mail.

Worldwide, though, I can see physical lasting a few years longer than North America. Japan sold LaserDiscs almost a decade after North America gave up, and South Korea sold VHS for around six years after North America gave up on that (with the surreal nature of movies like WALL-E and Avatar actually recieveing VHS releases over there). I'd also assume blanks would last a bit longer on the market, but eventually, companies like Verbatim would have to throw in the towel once the Guadalajara, Mexico factory gets sold for demolition in that scenario.

I do hope physical never dies, but in this day and age, who really knows.

I would blame the studios.


Streaming should not come out before physical media. Streaming basically cannibalizes everything while being sold at a loss. Personally I cant see theaters or cable surviving streaming and I cant see the film industry staying the same size without physical media, theaters or cable and probably a smaller number of streaming services.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Gotho(redux)

Okay, this is weird. Today, when browsing the forum, I noticed that everyone's avatar has stopped displaying. Tried viewing the forum in three different browsers and get the same result. Is this happening to anyone else or could it be something on my end?

Who is this?

(Yes, my humour is rubbish)

[Wendell R. Breland]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

I swear by my Apple TV, I certainly wouldn’t want to rely on smart tv apps alone.

In general I do like the Apple better than my other streamers. The Nvidia Shield Pro is good hardware but I dislike all the junk that is on the home screen that can not be removed unless you use a different launcher. One of these days I may install Kodi and try it out as a media player because it can pass lossless audio which the Apple with Infuse can not do.

[the-pi-guy]

Originally Posted by veritas

I would blame the studios.


Streaming should not come out before physical media. Streaming basically cannibalizes everything while being sold at a loss. Personally I cant see theaters or cable surviving streaming and I cant see the film industry staying the same size without physical media, theaters or cable and probably a smaller number of streaming services.

I really think companies would maximize revenue if movies went to the theater first, disc release, then streaming.

Might push a few more people to buy more discs, and people who are exclusively locked into streaming aren't going to give that up for discs.

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by the-pi-guy

I really think companies would maximize revenue if movies went to the theater first, disc release, then streaming.

Might push a few more people to buy more discs, and people who are exclusively locked into streaming aren't going to give that up for discs.

I don't know why it's so hard for you guys to see that Streaming is just a File on a Server, while Disc has more steps and cost to produce especially UHD 4K. Streaming is Direct Access to the Customer Base!

[Ender14]

Originally Posted by alchav21

I don't know why it's so hard for you guys to see that Streaming is just a File on a Server, while Disc has more steps and cost to produce especially UHD 4K. Steaming is Direct Access to the Customer Base!

Oh, it's steaming all right.

[the-pi-guy]

Originally Posted by alchav21

I don't know why it's so hard for you guys to see that Streaming is just a File on a Server, while Disc has more steps and cost to produce especially UHD 4K. Steaming is Direct Access to the Customer Base!

Doesn't have anything to do with what I was talking about there

[Wendell R. Breland]

Originally Posted by the-pi-guy

Doesn't have anything to do with what I was talking about there

No worries, that poster stays in a perpetual state of confusion!! Has trouble with hard facts, see this post.

[Ender14]

Had to pre-order this just in case it sells out:

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Wendell R. Breland

No worries, that poster stays in a perpetual state of confusion!! Has trouble with hard facts, see this post.

It’s ALL digital, didn’t you know?

[bhampton]

Originally Posted by alchav21

I don't know why it's so hard for you guys to see that Streaming is just a File on a Server, while Disc has more steps and cost to produce especially UHD 4K. Streaming is Direct Access to the Customer Base!

That's swell. I use steaming for movies and music on occasion.

I like to own music and movies and will buy the discs as long as they are offered. I am loving recent UHD BD releases with Dolby Atmos! They have better AV quality than you are used to.

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

It’s ALL digital, didn’t you know?

It's not Rocket Science, you put that Particular File on a Streaming Server and you are Hot To Go...Nothing FM about that!

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by alchav21

I don't know why it's so hard for you guys to see that Streaming is just a File on a Server, while Disc has more steps and cost to produce especially UHD 4K. Streaming is Direct Access to the Customer Base!

Streaming is lot more involved than merely accessing a file on a remote server. The continual costs of operating a huge server farm (power, hardware, maintenance) and the expense of using tremendous amounts of internet bandwidth are so large that most subscription streaming services are mired in debt and have yet to make a profit. These huge costs continue indefinitely for the streaming provider while the customer is on the hook for ever rising monthly subscription costs- often with ads on top of it all.

The cost of manufacturing and distributing a finite quantity of a specific title on physical media is a one time cost (per production run) for the studio or label offering that title. If the sales are profitable, then the studio or label can choose to do another production run.

It is also a one time cost for the consumer; once they buy that title on disc there are no more expenses associated with that disc beyond the trvial amount of power necessary to play and watch it.

Bottom line is that discs are a profitable endeavor (thus why there are still being made) and for the most part operating a streaming service is a gigantic money pit. A money pit with potential, sure, but still a money pit.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by alchav21

It's not Rocket Science

It is for you.

[gotmule]

Originally Posted by Ender14

Had to pre-order this just in case it sells out:

I have that one preordered too, plus preordered The Crazies and Freaky Tales Special editions from Lionsgate.

[PenguinInfinity]

Originally Posted by alchav21

I don't know why it's so hard for you guys to see that Streaming is just a File on a Server, while Disc has more steps and cost to produce especially UHD 4K. Streaming is Direct Access to the Customer Base!

Direct access to the customer base is terrible for customers. It means that the studio, rights holder, or streaming service has the ability to modify or remove a customer's movies at any time. It's also terrible for companies because it means that they have to keep spending money forever to allow customers to rewatch their movies.

With physical media once the disc is in a customer's hands companies have no ability to ever modify or delete anything off that disc. No company ever has to spend another cent on that disc either. A disc is permanent, unchangeable, and extremely cheap to watch.

[bhampton]

There's no reason steaming and packaged media can't continue to exist.

One Black Friday years ago the person in front of me in line had a cart full of discounted digital picture frames. He said that soon no one will have pictures any other way.

It's great to be optimistic but flying cars, self driving cars, autonomous android servants are problematic. Some people would rather declare them ready for use before even considering the potential problems.

I won't limit myself to consuming only online content. Netflix does not have everything and I can't get everything I want to watch online either.I do not want to try to justify limiting myself. The internet is great but it doesn't need to be everything for me.

[Steedeel]

Vilya in hospital, unstable heart rate. Let’s hope they can rapidly deal with the problem, and he is back home ASAP.

[Wendell R. Breland]

This will be my fourth purchase of , High-Def Digest review here.