The future of iTunes and Digital Copies - Blu-ray Forum

Walter-S_NC · 08-09-2013, 12:36 AM

This is a topic on other forums. Should I keep buying packaged media to have physical discs for backup, or should I just buy EST (electronic sell through)?

I am an EST guy.

The only packaged media I have bought in the last two years are Bluray Disc titles from the WalMart $7.88 bin. Even those I will only buy if they have complementary UV redemptions and after I get the title loaded into my UV library, the physical discs go into a box in my garage.

I have made many hundreds dollars of purchases in EST though. I have no hesitation in doing so.

Tomorrow, I am going to purchase the TV Series LEGO: Legends of Chima for my children to enjoy in 1080p HDX.

The trend is to do EST sales much earlier then packaged media. This series is one such example where I am buying a season pass and getting each new episode the day after it airs. Some movies get released EST the same time it is in theaters. Others are released EST three weeks before packaged media. It is a new trend of late.

I personally feel the purchase of packaged media to be unnecessary when I have the titles loaded into a vendor agnostic platform kept in pristine quality for perpetuity.

The national archives rate optical disc storage at seven years. After that, the reflectivity begins to fail.

A redundant storage array is the gold standard for long term storage of digital content, but it is simply out of the price range of consumers. A streaming provider can offer this to consumers via ubiquitous broadband.

In my mind, this is a superior long term storage method for my family’s entertainment content then optical disc.

Plus, I have the advantage of access to my family's library with a few clicks of a remote.

I can pause a movie downstairs when I get tired. Go upstairs to the bedroom, and pick back up at my save point (al la whole home DVR) without hauling a physical disc and then after I load it on a player upstairs having to search for the point I left off.

Instead, a few clicks of a remote brings the title back up at the point I left off.

The advantages of this technology are too many to pass up. This is why so many people are adopting it so quickly.

08-09-2013, 12:36 AM	#11
Walter-S_NC Banned Member since:Aug 2013	This is a topic on other forums. Should I keep buying packaged media to have physical discs for backup, or should I just buy EST (electronic sell through)? I am an EST guy. The only packaged media I have bought in the last two years are Bluray Disc titles from the WalMart $7.88 bin. Even those I will only buy if they have complementary UV redemptions and after I get the title loaded into my UV library, the physical discs go into a box in my garage. I have made many hundreds dollars of purchases in EST though. I have no hesitation in doing so. Tomorrow, I am going to purchase the TV Series LEGO: Legends of Chima for my children to enjoy in 1080p HDX. The trend is to do EST sales much earlier then packaged media. This series is one such example where I am buying a season pass and getting each new episode the day after it airs. Some movies get released EST the same time it is in theaters. Others are released EST three weeks before packaged media. It is a new trend of late. I personally feel the purchase of packaged media to be unnecessary when I have the titles loaded into a vendor agnostic platform kept in pristine quality for perpetuity. The national archives rate optical disc storage at seven years. After that, the reflectivity begins to fail. A redundant storage array is the gold standard for long term storage of digital content, but it is simply out of the price range of consumers. A streaming provider can offer this to consumers via ubiquitous broadband. In my mind, this is a superior long term storage method for my family’s entertainment content then optical disc. Plus, I have the advantage of access to my family's library with a few clicks of a remote. I can pause a movie downstairs when I get tired. Go upstairs to the bedroom, and pick back up at my save point (al la whole home DVR) without hauling a physical disc and then after I load it on a player upstairs having to search for the point I left off. Instead, a few clicks of a remote brings the title back up at the point I left off. The advantages of this technology are too many to pass up. This is why so many people are adopting it so quickly. Last edited by Walter-S_NC; 08-09-2013 at 12:54 AM.

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