The death of DVDs
A: First, watch what you say about my Granny. She makes great bread pudding and $2 used to buy a lot of ribbon candy.
The reason for the awkward look is that DVDs are dead. At least they are for most of us. What? You don't believe me?
Think CDs a few years back. If you are like most of us, you still have hundreds of CDs you have been collecting for years stored in a box. You have long since copied your best cuts to your favorite MP3 player/tablet/phone. A few years ago you noticed there was no reason to buy another CD. Did you notice you still got (or get) the occasional CD from a friend? Welcome to the club.
According to Digital Music News (digitalmusicnews.com), CDs arrived in 1984, peaked in 2000, and are quickly disappearing. More important for the music industry is the lack of album sales compared to skyrocketing single sales (downloads).
The only CD you should buy is the one they sell in the lobby of the concert for your first date in case the song she likes becomes "your song".
DVDs are just a step behind CDs in disappearing sales. According to SNL Kagan (snl.com), sales have dropped 44 percent in the last two years. DVDs first appeared in 1995. For years now, we have been gleefully buying our favorite movies in high definition, Blu-ray, or 3D.
After you bought your first DVD player (to replace your VCR), you started renting, then buying your favorite movies. As the prices for even new releases plunged, your collection continued to grow. In addition to owning and lending your collection, you get those treasured movie extras.
So, when did you buy your last movie on DVD? For me, it was three years ago. That's when video-on-demand (VOD) became commonplace on DirecTV, DISH Network, and cable. You also likely signed up for Netflix, Amazon Video, Hulu+, or a similar streaming service in the last couple of years. Now you have a massive video library at your fingertips for about $80 a year, available whenever it suits you on your desktop, laptop, tablet, or TV. VOD has decimated DVD sales.
The lag time between movie release and DVD/VOD has gotten pretty short. It seems like the day it leaves the theater, you can download the movie. So, instead of building your own library one movie at a time, you can view your virtual movie library of thousands with a click or two and without having to get up from the couch. All off this just a few weeks after your friends made it to the theater.
There is another factor to declining DVD sales: bootlegging. The DVD sales figures are artificially low because of wide-spread illegal copying of movies. Estimates are that bootlegged and illegal copies account for over $6 billion in lost ticket and DVD sales to Hollywood. So, while DVD sales are quickly drying up, the numbers are a little skewed since many of your friends are okay with buying stolen copies. I am not.
I think it's time to sell your DVD collection while it still has some yard-sale value. Then, call your Granny and invite her over to watch Madame X or Strangers on a Train.
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