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Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

cnn.com

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Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#41

Post by ghaff »

josteink wrote: post #25
eat wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To me it looks more like a continuation of the decline of brick and mortar retail. Even if I want to watch films on blue-ray, why would I ever want to drive to a Best Buy to purchase them?

Because you can have it now and not in three days? Sometimes urgency is a factor.

If I really must have something right now, I'm highly unlikely to spend 30 minutes plus to drive to the nearest Best Buy to purchase a physical disc. And I don't think that's atypical. I have to believe the most common pattern for someone to buy physical media at a local store is that they're in the store for some other reason and they see a disc for a movie they want to watch.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#42

Post by c420 »

gopher2000 wrote: post #34
panzagl wrote: post #30

Oddly enough my college-aged daughter just asked if we had an extra dvd player laying around, and if not she might get one/ask for one for Christmas. I think she's preparing for when she gets locked out of all of the family's streaming services, or they all go ad-supported.

Have any streaming services gone ad-supported beyond introducing lower cost tiers as an alternative to existing premium subscriptions without ads?

Prime will require an extra $3/mo to avoid their additional ads in the near future.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#43

Post by morelisp »

eat wrote: post #21
beowulfey wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It probably marks the beginning of the end for the medium though

To me it looks more like a continuation of the decline of brick and mortar retail. Even if I want to watch films on blue-ray, why would I ever want to drive to a Best Buy to purchase them?

Browsing an enormous shelf of hundreds (at peak thousands) of films is a much better way to find new things than clicking "Next" 5-20 at a time and trying to parse a tiny thumbnail with a probably half-corrupted title.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#44

Post by spunker540 »

I may be an outlier— but I live in Manhattan and have two Best Buys each roughly a ~20 min walk away.

A few times a year I’ll need a cable or an external hard drive, or a new controller, mouse etc, and want it right now and I’ll just walk to whichever Best Buy has it in stock. When I do I still have the same feelings I got as a kid when I’d go to circuit city and the impulse to browse is hard to resist.

They have a lot of fun gadgets, the connected home category keeps growing and growing… doorbells, smart speakers, VR, wearables, theraguns, peloton, e-bikes; not to mention gaming has never been bigger.

My anecdotal point is: there’s lots of techy things to sell besides commoditized content like CDs and Blu-ray’s. Personally I’m never going to Best Buy for media. But it’s certainly fun to browse all the new tech and get a more hands-on view. I don’t blame them for this change, assuming the numbers make sense.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#45

Post by whoopdedo »

Best Buy is to blame for this because they started the race-to-the-bottom in DVD/CD sales back in the 90s. To undercut established chains they started selling movies and music at a loss. DVDs as low as $10, CDs for $5. It shifted the expected cost of media to the low end and publishers responded by printing discs the cheapest way possible. Poor compression, limited extra content, flimsy boxes and a single sheet insert. The typical DVD and later Blu-Ray bought in the US is junk.

It's part of why LPs have become fashionable again. The record itself is a work of art. You'll get it in a nice box or sleeve with multi-page booklet. When you hold a LP it has a substance that is lacking from a BD clamshell.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#46

Post by taeric »

paxys wrote: post #18
taeric wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is valuable, but what are folks going there for, nowadays?

Literally everything they sell. You have to remember that the majority of Americans still don't shop online.

I don't actually know what they sell. Back when I did go, it was to get games and movies.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#47

Post by gremlinsinc »

c420 wrote: post #42
gopher2000 wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have any streaming services gone ad-supported beyond introducing lower cost tiers as an alternative to existing premium subscriptions without ads?

Prime will require an extra $3/mo to avoid their additional ads in the near future.

I kinda wish streaming could basically become like something that maybe has some consistency between platforms and allows for some bundling packages... People can't afford 15 streaming plans, but maybe buy 10 get the last 5 free, and all the plans share based on shared data of usage (medium like model, views / subscribers = % of payout). They could have an added bonus, whoever refers the customer to signup gets an extra x%.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#48

Post by criddell »

iandanforth wrote: post #11

I understand that streaming is a great option but what about high quality? I buy Blu-rays of media where quality is a high point of the experience. Things like Pixar films, traditional animation, films with extraordinary visuals (e.g. LoTR). Are there full-quality digital/downloadable options that I'm not aware of?

Sony has a streaming service called Bravia Core. To use it, you need to be able to download at a sustained 115 Mbps.

It's kind of funny that on Bravia TVs, this means you have to connect wirelessly because their ethernet port only supports 100 Mbps.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#49

Post by squeaky-clean »

graypegg wrote: post #16
iandanforth wrote: post #11

I understand that streaming is a great option but what about high quality? I buy Blu-rays of media where quality is a high point of the experience. Things like Pixar films, traditional animation, films with extraordinary visuals (e.g. LoTR). Are there full-quality digital/downloadable options that I'm not aware of?

I think a lot of streaming services offer some sort of 4K upgrade pricing. [0] Doesn't seem like the requirements for netflix are even that demanding, minimum 15mbps is at least a common internet speed where I'm from. [0] https://help.netflix.com/en/node/13444

UHD disc media has a bitrate from 72mbps to 144mbps. I won't say it's a night and day difference, my parents can't tell the difference. But there's a difference and if you're really particular about quality (okay okay, I'm a bit of a snob) it's a big deal.

For something like a Marvel movie, whatever. For something like Planet Earth or 2001, watching it on streaming is disappointing after owning the disc version.

Re: Best Buy stores to stop selling DVDs, Blu-ray in 2024

#50

Post by david38 »

_the_inflator wrote: post #40

I am back at DVD. Stuff I like isn’t or not anymore streamed, only available via DVD. DVD however is annoying. Waiting for the Menu, FBI warning - everything you don’t need nor want as paying customer. So I am considering doing what needs to be done: NAT sever with ripped DVDs. Local streaming. ;)

The companies did it to themselves with the FBI warning. Ignorance of the law is already no defense.
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