“We don’t have an obligation to give consumers what they want when they want it.”
That’s a real quote from a studio executive, and if this profit-hungry motivation doesn’t have you up in flames, I don’t know what will.
I understand that the movie industry is losing money across the board (so much for the cries of recession-proof, eh?), but taking advantage of your consumers is NOT the way to make up the deficit. According to /Film, this is the state of the industry:
“Despite a few prominent successes at the box office this year, the industry is in a state of financial turmoil, with DVD sales cratering, Blu-Ray sales not compensating, and the rise of rental companies like Netflix and Redbox, offering consumers a way to see a movie for cheap.”
I think Netflix and Redbox are great (I have become avid users of both this year), and with the latter announcing plans to go digital, the future is not in discs anymore. It’s on the Internet.
Universal, Fox, and Warner Bros. have all been skeptics of the new frontier, waiting four weeks to release their movies digitally out of fear that it will affect DVD sales. They are only about to get worse, according to /Film. A Warner Bros. executive said, “To be honest, I think [the window] a little short today versus what we probably need … that will get revisited as those deals expire.” And to make matters worse, they plan on limiting the movies released to Netflix instant streaming, which is quickly becoming their most used feature.
I buy few DVDs anymore, and thanks to iTunes and Netflix offering HD rentals and streaming, I don’t feel the need to buy a Blu-Ray player. We are entering the digital age of movies, and it’s time that the studios embrace it. I have embraced it, so should they. There will always be a place for these discs, although first it will be in the dust and soon after in a museum next to the VHS tapes and LaserDiscs.
(For all those desiring a more business-savvy approach to this topic, check out the great piece that The Los Angeles Times ran a few weeks ago.)
Marshall and the Movies 
I like DVDs. Having a physical copy is somehow reassuring.
Agreed, recently I checked out a slew of VHS’ from the library and watched them, there was something nice about having something chunky and tangible to put in the machine.