Will DVDs Ever Go Away?

In one word – no. While DVD sales and popularity have declined from their peak in the 2000s, the format will endure for years to come. DVDs still deliver an unparalleled movie-watching experience that streaming can‘t fully replicate. Let‘s dive into the key factors that will sustain DVDs and Blu-rays into the foreseeable future.

Why DVDs Dominated Home Video

First, a quick look back at what fueled the rise and peak dominance of DVDs. DVDs, introduced in the late 1990s, utterly transformed home entertainment thanks to:

• Far superior video quality compared to grainy VHS tapes
• Compact size versus bulky videocassettes
• Random access to jump to any scene instantly
• Extra features like director commentaries and making-of docs

DVD players and discs quickly became must-have items in most homes during the early 2000s. According to the DEG Year-End Home Entertainment Report, DVD sales in the U.S. peaked at over $16 billion in 2006. DVD had swiftly conquered the home video landscape.

The Steep Fall of DVD Sales

But that peak was followed by a precipitous decline in DVD sales and rentals over the next decade-plus, falling nearly 86% from 2006 to 2020. According to The Numbers, the catalysts included:

• Video streaming services: Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video rose to prominence starting around 2007, providing instant access to movies at a flat monthly rate rather than per title purchase. This led consumers to forego collecting DVDs in favor of the convenience and cost savings of streaming.
• Digital rentals and purchases: iTunes, Amazon, Vudu and other digital storefronts that allowed permanent or temporary downloads of movies emerged in the late 2000s as alternatives to physical discs.
• The Great Recession: The 2008 financial collapse led consumers to severely cut discretionary spending on entertainment and made low-cost streaming more appealing.
• Binge-watching television: Viewers shifting focus to immersing in long-form episodic series took time away from watching movies on disc.
• Video games: Time spent on gaming cut into movie watching, as gaming systems like PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii attracted consumers.

In just a decade, DVD went from the undisputed king of home video to a fading format in the streaming age. But obituaries for DVDs were premature…

Why DVDs Still Have Value

While DVD sales will likely never reach their mid-2000s heights again, the format remains highly valued by collectors, cinephiles, and casual viewers alike for these key reasons:

Superior Audiovisual Experience

Video: DVDs provide 480p resolution, while streaming often maxes out at 720p and 1080p only for select premium content. This makes DVD the better choice for home theater enthusiasts who want crisp image quality.

Audio: DVD sound comes in uncompressed PCM or high-bitrate Dolby Digital, delivering audio depth and fidelity streaming can‘t match due to lossy compression.

Extras: The ample extra features packed onto DVDs, like director commentaries, making-of docs, bloopers and deleted scenes, provide value that streaming copies lack.

Collectability: Niche DVD titles go out of print quickly and become valuable to collectors in a way streaming films rarely do. OOP horror, concert films and anime command high resale prices.

Ownership: DVD buyers own a physical copy indefinitely. With streaming, you are merely licensing access and can lose access anytime a service loses rights.

No Internet required: DVDs allow offline viewing anywhere, useful for areas without reliable broadband or frequent travelers. Streaming depends on steady connectivity.

Per the 2021 DEG Year-End Home Entertainment Report, DVD/Blu-ray sales increased nearly 20% over 2020, affirming discs‘ enduring place.

Specialty Retailers Championing DVD

Part of what is keeping DVDs alive is specialty retailers catering to movie buffs and collectors. Stores like Amoeba Music house tens of thousands of new and used titles on disc. Small DVD boutiques thrive supplying rare horror, concert films and other niche genres. And DVD sections still occupy significant retail space at chains like Best Buy and Target.

Redbox‘s 33,000+ rental kiosks, though reduced from the peak, remain a popular DVD rental choice. And Netflix maintains a thriving DVD-by-mail service with over 200,000 subscribers as of early 2022 – testament to demand for their disc catalog four times bigger than streaming. These retailers show viability remains in catering to disc devotees.

The Rise and Plateau of Blu-ray

When introduced in 2006, Blu-ray was intended as the successor DVD format, boasting high-definition 1080p video resolution and lossless audio unmatchable by DVD. But its adoption was hampered by a format war with HD DVD in 2006-2008. Blu-ray won out, but its sales never came close to matching DVD‘s due to the simultaneous rise of streaming.

Per DEG data, Blu-ray accounted for just 5% of the total home video market in 2021. But it retains a niche among home theater die-hards willing to pay higher prices for best-in-class picture and sound. Major blockbusters and premium cable series still arrive on Blu-ray accompanied by DVD editions. Blu-ray provides quality streaming can‘t replicate, so it will co-exist with DVD as the high-end physical format.

(Source: The Numbers)

DVDs‘ Prospects: Vinyl Records Redux?

When forecasting DVDs‘ future, the arc of vinyl records offers an instructive comparison. By the 1990s, vinyl LPs had been completely supplanted by cassettes, CDs and later MP3s as the mainstream music format. But vinyl endured through specialty record stores and fans who valued the warm analog sound.

Similarly, DVDs offer an experience streaming can‘t fully replicate, which should sustain the format for years among devotees willing to forgo some convenience for higher quality. The DVD collector‘s market will keep obscure and rare titles available. And having a broad DVD library will remain a badge of honor for true cinephiles.

Tips for Building Your DVD Collection

For movie buffs in the streaming era, is it still worth buying DVDs? Here are some collector tips:

• Focus on must-own titles unlikely to appear on streaming due to rights issues or niche status. Out-of-print horror, concert films and anime are cases where DVD shines.

• Carefully store discs away from light damage, extreme temps and moisture. Proper storage and handling can maintain discs for decades.

• Research compatible players and displays to experience DVDs as intended. Many new HDTVs still support full DVD resolution.

• Learn regional codes to know which discs play on your player. Importing rare titles may require a region-free player.

• Curate selectively instead of buying indiscriminately. Prioritize films you will rewatch and treasure long-term.

• Consider upgrading select favorites to Blu-ray to enjoy bonus features and sublime image quality.

• Explore boutique labels like Criterion for lavish presentations of classic films unavailable via streaming.

DVD still provides an unrivaled movie-watching experience and remains the only way to own many favorite films. Discs open up a world of cinema history unlikely to appear on streaming anytime soon.

DVDs Will Endure in Some Form

While the glory days of $16 billion in annual DVD sales are likely gone for good, the format appears poised to endure in some capacity for the foreseeable future. The quality, features, and ownership that discs provide will continue to attract a sizable base of movie-loving consumers.

Major studios like Warner Bros. and boutique distributors still count DVD releases as a key revenue stream, especially for back-catalog titles and deluxe editions. Even as consumers migrate to streaming, physical media retains an appeal streaming struggles to replicate. DVDs seem destined to exist as a niche physical format rather than vanish entirely.

For movie aficionados especially, DVDs and Blu-rays offer a way to collect and cherish favorite films for decades to come. Discs aren‘t going away completely anytime soon.