Why We All Should Be Concerned About the Death of Physical Media
By Movieguide® Contributor
While digital ownership has become the main way consumers buy their movies, TV shows and music, trouble looms underneath the quick and easy form of access.
LG recently announced it is discontinuing its manufacturing of Blu-ray players, placing an already dying media form onto its deathbed. While many see no problem with this, having not bought a DVD or Blu-ray in years, the death of physical media poses a major problem for consumers. The issue comes from what it means to own something when you don’t physically own it.
With little exception, digital copies really serve as digital licenses, which means they can be revoked or changed at any time. This is especially true as companies compete with each other, resulting in disputes that change their licensing agreements. Physical copies, however, are forever, meaning that once you own a physical copy, a licensing dispute does not affect your ability to access the content you paid for.
“If you buy a 4K Ultra HD, you buy a Blu-ray, it’s on your shelf, it’s yours. No company is going to break into your house and take it from you and repossess it. It’s yours and you own it,” director Christopher Nolan said in 2023 ahead of the release of OPPENHEIMER. “That’s never really the case with any form of digital distribution.”
For a long time, many consumers didn’t know that digital distribution rights could be changed, affecting their purchases, however, companies have recently been forced to be more open about their policies. Video game distributor Steam, for example, added a disclosure that appears during its checkout process, informing buyers that they are purchasing a license to access a game, rather than buying the game itself.
Different licensing agreements in different countries also play a major role in a person’s digital library. Purchased content that is available in a traveler’s home country might be unavailable when they travel abroad if that piece of media is not available in the country they are visiting. While this can be annoying while on vacation, it can effectively void a person’s entire library if they move to a country where their purchased media is no longer accessible.
Digital media also poses another problem, as a company can change the media, rather than staying frozen once it is released.
This has caused many older movies and TV shows to change their music as licensing agreements change or for full scenes to be removed. The version of IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE available on Amazon Prime Video, for example, is an abridged version that removes the entirety of the Pottersville scene where Jimmy Stewart’s character, George Bailey, experiences how different the world would be if he were never born.
READ MORE: AMAZON CUTS THIS CRUCIAL SCENE FROM IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE
While digital media is certainly more convenient than physical, it poses major problems for consumers. Unfortunately, it is all but too late to change the momentum digital media has. Rather than trying to return to Blu-ray and DVD, many are now asking lawmakers to protect their rights as owners so their digital purchases are just as secure as physical ones.
READ MORE: WHY HARDCORE MOVIE FANS ARE FLOCKING TO BLU-RAY
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