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

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Vilya

The fact that I use streaming is actually the biggest compliment that I can give it.

Subscription streaming, albeit mostly from shared accounts, is my replacement for cable TV. I use it for viewing titles that are of a casual interest; content that I want to see, but probably have no interest in owning.

I also use it to research titles that may be of even greater interest. There have been several occasions where my streaming of a movie led me to purchase that movie on disc.

I use Vudu as a digital substitute for the once ubiquitous video rental store. I even watch their "free with ads" movies at the end of the month to earn my $2 credit which I in turn use towards their paid offerings.

I redeem my digital codes at Movies Anywhere and at Vudu which allows me remote access to several of my movies. I now have 470 titles redeemed at MA and 635 at Vudu. I also allow others access to my digital collection. I share what I have, too.

Then there is the original content unique to certain subscription services. While much of it is disposable dreck, a substantial amount of it is actually pretty good. I enjoyed 4 episodes of Ozark season three on Netflix just last night. I will even say that it mostly looked very good.

While I am critical of the video quality of streaming, I can still enjoy what I am watching. I can't help but notice its limitations, but often times the quality is quite decent overall. I wish the quality was more consistent throughout the runtime. If streaming was not a positive experience for me, I would not use it.

There, was that so hard! I'm kidding, very well written

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Vilya

There are "loads of films" just in my disc library that are unavailable on subscription streaming, many of them are also not available as video on demand rentals or as digital purchases.

Of course. I was offering a reason why, sometimes, streaming is better. As you said, there are many physical titles not available on streaming.

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Vilya

I put my computer's blu-ray burner to very good use.

I'm interested now. What are some of the things you burn? Do you create favourite episode discs?

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Even I own Downton Abbey on blu-ray, except for the latest movie that they did. I will probably add it someday.

There is more than just Twin Peaks and "Look Ma! No hands!" football on TV, you know.

Well, I’m enjoying Killing Eve at the moment. Really great show and it looks great on Blu-ray. Also, the original Twilight Zone series 5.

That’s enough to keep me going for a couple of weeks.

I would place my top 10 is as follows:

Twin Peaks
This Is England 86,88 and 90
Life On Mars/ Ashes To Ashes (UK version obviously)
The Office (UK)
The Twilight Zone (originals)
Broadchurch
The X Files
Breaking Bad
Hannibal
The Inbetweeners (UK)

Dowton Abbey wise, just feel like I have seen that type of thing a hundred times. Also, I’m not big on most costume dramas. I think you and SC are older gentlemen and more suited to that material.

[slimdude]

Originally Posted by SCLee

I'm interested now. What are some of the things you burn? Do you create favourite episode discs?

You may not be aware but piracy is strictly forbidden to be discuss on this forum because it's illegal.

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by slimdude

You may not be aware but piracy is strictly forbidden to be discuss on this forum because it's illegal.

I wasn't aware of that.

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

Well, I’m enjoying Killing Eve at the moment. Really great show and it looks great on Blu-ray. Also, the original Twilight Zone series 5.

That’s enough to keep me going for a couple of weeks.

I would place my top 10 is as follows:

Twin Peaks
This Is England 86,88 and 90
Life On Mars/ Ashes To Ashes (UK version obviously)
The Office (UK)
The Twilight Zone (originals)
Broadchurch
The X Files
Breaking Bad
Hannibal
The Inbetweeners (UK)

Dowton Abbey wise, just feel like I have seen that type of thing a hundred times. Also, I’m not big on most costume dramas. I think you and SC are older gentlemen and more suited to that material.

I can't speak for Vilya, but I get bored of immature shows eventually and I want to watch something made for grown-ups. Something that takes me away to a simpler time, when there was less stress. Before the internet and physical media players lol.

It's no different than Mad Men or Boardwalk Empire.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by SCLee

I can't speak for Vilya, but I get bored of immature shows eventually and I want to watch something made for grown-ups. Something that takes me away to a simpler time, when there was less stress. Before the internet and physical media players lol.

It's no different than Mad Men or Boardwalk Empire.

I actually think this last decade has seem some incredible shows.
Breaking Bad, Game Of Thrones, The Wire etc.. really great stuff.

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

I actually think this last decade has seem some incredible shows.
Breaking Bad, Game Of Thrones, The Wire etc.. really great stuff.

No doubt, three great shows with excellent writing. I've seen them all through but (for me, once again, for me) they don't have re-watchability and I've gotten bored of anti-hero shows. I rarely re-watch television shows now.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by slimdude

You may not be aware but piracy is strictly forbidden to be discuss on this forum because it's illegal.

Piracy is indeed illegal and thus the ways to engage in it are forbidden to discuss on this forum.

But that is not what I was talking about, either.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by SCLee

I'm interested now. What are some of the things you burn? Do you create favourite episode discs?

I use my blu-ray burner primarily to make back-ups of certain discs, mainly titles that have gone out of print. I also make back-ups of discs that have been reported to have unusually high rates of failure. These are for my own personal use.

I have never created a playlist such as I described, but I have thought about it. Other people do so and that is not a crime anymore than making music playlists from CDs are.

Some people back up their entire disc libraries by ripping them to their home servers and then putting their discs into storage.

None of the above activities are illegal, but as the software that allows you to do these things can be used for piracy it is not a permitted topic to discuss in detail. Note that such software is legal and is sold openly.

People have been making back-ups of their content for decades whether they rip the files to their server or whether they burn a back-up disc.

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Vilya

People have been making back-ups of their content for decades whether they rip the files to their server or whether they burn a back-up disc.

Is this possible with UHD too? For back-ups. Not that I'm going to do it. I have no need anyway.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by SCLee

Is this possible with UHD too? For back-ups. Not that I'm going to do it.

I don't think so, but I do not know for certain as I have not looked into it.

As my 4K discs usually come with a blu-ray copy as well, I have been content to use that as my back-up.

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Vilya

I don't think so, but I do not know for certain as I have not looked into it.

As my 4K discs usually come with a blu-ray copy as well, I have been content to use that as my back-up.

Good point. I was thinking more if crooks copied and sold them, but I don't recall seeing any pirated UHD's anywhere. Not that I'm looking for them There used to be loads of DVD's (with rubbish picture quality) sold by dodgy people in town centres. Especially abroad.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by PenguinInfinity

That's not true, breaking copy protection is technically illegal. Since most DVDs and Blu-ray Discs have copy protection it is illegal to make copies of them for personal use. Music CDs don't have copy protection so making copies of them is legal.

No one has ever gone to court for breaking copy protection in order to make personal copies. And it's possible that if they did then the courts would rule in their favor and the laws would change.

I'm not at all against people making copies for personal use. I just wanted to clarify the law.

This has been debated on these forums many times and I do not believe that it is illegal to make back-ups for personal use. The precedent for people doing so was set decades ago.

As you said, I, too, am unaware of a single person being prosecuted for making back-ups in the entire history of home video. Further, the software that makes all of this possible is legal and is sold openly.

I admit that I should not make definitive statements as to what is, or is not, legal as I am not a lawyer, but if making back-ups for personal use is a crime then it is among the least prosecuted offenses in the history of jurisprudence.

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Vilya

This has been debated on these forums many times and I do not believe that it is illegal to make back-ups for personal use. The precedent for people doing so was set decades ago.

It is technically illegal.

https://www.whathifi.com/news/rippin...-illegal-again

But let's be honest, everyone has ripped CD's to their I-pods / I-phones and some people do back up their collection. As you said, no one has ever been tried in court for this, no doubt it would be difficult to discover and prove. People used to tape music off the radio onto cassettes, we've all heard of the mix tape or the mix CD. Nowadays you usually get a free digital MP3 version (on Amazon) with a CD purchase.

[SCLee]

Of course they don't want people to do it because they'd rather they re-buy it! They've removed digital codes from UK physical media. How long before they do this in America? They want us to buy it digitally and on physical media. They certainly don't want people to sell those codes cheaper than they can. It's all about money!

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by SCLee

It is technically illegal.

https://www.whathifi.com/news/rippin...-illegal-again

But let's be honest everyone rips CD's to their I-pods / I-phones and some people do back up their collection. As you said, no one has ever been tried in court for this, no doubt it would be difficult to discover and prove. People used to tape music off the radio onto cassettes, we've all heard of the mix tape or the mix CD.

There have been links posted about this subject many times from many sources, countries, and dates and it is a rather confusing mess in total.

I base my belief that is not illegal on the two simple facts that no one has been prosecuted, or even sued in civil court, for making back-ups and that the software that enables it is sold openly. No attempts to stop the sales of such software have been made that I am aware of.

If making back-ups is technically illegal, no government appears to care enough to even attempt to enforce it and no studio cares enough to bring civil action against anyone for doing so. Such apathy to enforce laws, both from government and industry, seem suspect to me.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by PenguinInfinity

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 established circumvention of copy-protection and DRM as illegal. It made exemptions for certain situations, but personal back-ups are not among them.

The software that removes DRM is legal in various parts of the world, but not the United States. It is never available at any retail stores in the United States but the US government doesn't have to authority to actually make it hard for US citizens to get it. Various websites that sell or give away that software have gone to court and some have been shutdown.

Ease of access most certainly doesn't equate to legality. There will always be millions of websites that provide illegal software and content. No one has the ability to ever make a dent in their numbers.

What constitutes an exemption is one of the areas that have been hotly debated.

Like with most of my discs, my software was purchased online and right here in the U.S. I have not bought a piece a software from a retail store in ages.

Neither governments nor the studios themselves have gone after consumers for making personal back-ups and that is very telling. While governments likely have higher enforcement priorities, the studios have a much greater interest here and they have not brought civil action against anyone anywhere ever as far as I can tell.

I do not care to tread these waters any more than I have already because this topic is too close to being forbidden for my comfort.

[SCLee]

Originally Posted by Vilya

If making back-ups is technically illegal, no government appears to care enough to even attempt to enforce it and no studio cares enough to bring civil action against anyone for doing so. Such apathy to enforce laws, both from government and industry, seem suspect to me.

Personally, I've never done it, I don't watch the discs that often and so they're unlikely to break and they're all popular titles.

I don't see a problem in making a back-up for personal use, especially if it's a rare title that could be lost. It's not like you're selling them. Technically, we're not allowed to lend films to friends and family but who hasn't done that in the past? Well, not me any more (not with UHD) but in the days of VHS (when everyone had a player) I did.