When will blu-rays totally replace dvds?

[Spit]

I got cable recently, and noticed there are still a good deal of commercials plugging dvds. Whats up with that? It seems like Blu-rays have been out long enough to be able to start replacing dvds. Anyone want to speculate on how long it will take before Blu-rays totally replace dvds? I'm kind of surprised the switch isn't happening faster.

[buck135]

Well, I just got saw a Walmart commercial today stating that you can bring in your DVD's/Blu-rays (which are on their list of acceptable titles) and have them uploaded to Ultraviolet (a cloud type application) for $2.00 a movie. Therefore you can watch the movie on a tablet, PC, phone, whenever and wherever. I am intrigued and terrified by this. I have an obsessive nature regarding blu-rays. I love the increase in quality and I pray that they are around for many years to come. My fear is studios won't get around to releasing older catalogue titles in high definition because the average consumers aren't as concerned with the quality as I am. We'll see.

[hots4]

i think it will be awhile, i think the average consumer is quite happy with the quality of DVD, also remember we are still in/or just coming out of resession so upgrades are not top of everybodys list, i also believe the average consumer will still want physical media, blu ray sales are increasing so i think it will happen, but it's gonna be a while, what you will probably get is just a single release, with blu, dvd and media copy, which covers requirements.

[rxfiend]

I feel they won't ever fully replace DVDs. I think the format will just co-exist with each other for quite a bit more time.

[elDomenechHDG]

Every once in a while someone poses this question, When will Blu-rays replace DVDs. It's a subject worthy of discussion but I believe the better question would be: When will streaming replace physical media? The ads we're seeing on TV are ads for "home video" in general, not just DVD. Nobody sells just DVD anymore (not talking about independent labels like Code Red - they're in a different category). I see a lot more talk on the net about physical media disappearing altogether in favor of watching movies on your cellphones (aka iPhones), laptops, etc. Hipsters will always embrace "the latest thing" but personally I don't see physical media ever going away completely. The only places I want to watch movies are in a theater (less so these days because of inconsiderate assholes) or in the comfort of my living room, not as I take a dump, walk down the street or wait in line at the supermarket. Anyone who is OK with watching movies "on the go" isn't a true cinephile.

There will always be a physical media market for movies like Lawrence of Arabia or Star Wars (real films, not product). Streaming will be sufficient to catch forgettable dreck like THE CHANGE-UP or anything with Adam Sandler. Nobody wants a 3-disc Limited Edition of CASA DE MI PADRE that has four commentaries and a 2 hour making-of doc. But lots of true cinephiles will always crave to see their favorite classics in true hiigh definition on a big screen TV at home.

[Mikey Horror]

I don't think streaming and downloading will completely take over physical media anytime soon. Look how long itunes has been popular and you can still buy CDs. Christ, even vinyl is making a comeback.

[evildeadfan123]

I personally, everything I have purchased in the last 10 months, with exception of maybe 5 dvds, has been Blu-Ray

[SaviniFan]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKiIroiCvZ0

Well said Mr. Lynch.....well said.

[Workshed]

June 6, 2014, at approx. 7:22pm.

[shape22]

I don't believe that Blu-ray will ever become the only physical format. Firmware updates remain beyond the comfort level of the Wal-Mart types who used to demand full-frame releases of feature films. If you search the forums at any DVD/Blu-ray review site you'll see all kinds of threads devoted to compatibility issues with different players. That makes Blu-ray a difficult format for the low-tech crowd.

DVD remains the one-size-fits-all option. I don't think it will disappear until a less complicated hi-def format hits the market. That type of format could eventually replace DVD and Blu-ray.

[Mutilated Prey]

Originally Posted by rxfiend

I feel they won't ever fully replace DVDs. I think the format will just co-exist with each other for quite a bit more time.

I agree with Jason's Grandpa. DVD media is dirt cheap and there are tons of people that will never make the Blu Ray jump purely because it doesn't fit into their economic lifestyle. There will be a market for DVD's for a long time to come.

[dave13]

Originally Posted by SaviniFan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKiIroiCvZ0

Well said Mr. Lynch.....well said.

i've seen that before, i love that video. the incredulity, disappointment, and anger he expresses sums up my feelings perfectly.

[Robert Simandl]

Robert Wagner and Fred Thoimpson are currently peddling DVD's that explain why you simply HAVE to have a reverse mortgage on your home.

When those get redone as blu-ray discs, THEN I'll take the idea of DVD's going away permanently, seriously.

[Jeremy]

Blu-Ray's road to acceptance as the standard in home video shares a lot more in common with the early days of VHS than it does with DVD, which the studios are discovering to their considerable unhappiness. VHS was rolled out in the late 70's and early 80's at a time when the economy was suffering from recession, inflation and high unemployment, and it faced a format war in which it had to square off not only against Betamax, but it also faced competition from early video disc formats, particularly laserdiscs (which in an alternate timeline could have become very popular in this country, since they were actually cheaper to produce than VHS tapes). Now you have Blu-Ray, which also had to fight a format war, winning the battle just as the economy was slipping into an even worse recession. DVD never had to contend with that, it never had to fight a real format war (Divx was basically DOA) and it was rolled out on an economic upswing. And with DVD, you didn't need extra technology to make it work, almost everyone already had a TV after all, while with Blu-Ray it was senseless to get a player unless you already had an HDTV, which a lot of people didn't and still don't. And don't forget that the backwards compatibility of Blu-Ray players and the ability to upconvert DVDs, while being consumer friendly, makes it a lot easier for people who do make the switch to justify holding onto their DVD collections and not re-buy most of their discs.

What it comes down to is that Blu-Ray will someday become the standard in physical media, but the slowness with which it is being adopted means that it may not become the standard in home video as a whole, streaming media may very well overtake it in terms of number of customers/viewers/etc (and that comes from someone who is typically bearish on the demise of physical media). And in their push to get consumers switched over to Blu-Ray, the studios have done a very good job of devaluing their libraries. I remember a time, twenty years ago, when you could not buy a VHS release from any of the big studios for anything less than $14.95, and $19.95 was the standard price for most titles. Any companies that priced their tapes cheaper than that were either selling public domain movies and/or passing off cheap LP/EP mode tapes on the public. Eventually that started to change, before DVD hit Columbia/Sony started selling some titles for $10 and Paramount began reissuing certain films for that price on EP cassettes. Nowadays though, a movie comes out on Blu-Ray for $29.95 and within eighteen months you can get it at Best Buy for $7.99, which really has become the consumer expectation now, that if they wait a little while they can pick up movies for unimaginably dirt cheap prices.

[Agentsusp]

For your average consumer it's not about quality, it's about ease of use. Blu-Rays are not any easier to use than a DVD. But a DVD was MUCH easier to use than a VHS (no rewind, smaller, etc etc) so they don't really see a reason to upgrade, and when you factor in the previously mentioned firmware issues, it's never going to happen. Blu Ray will always be the laser disc to DVD's VHS, util streaming and clouds take over.