What do fans who insist on physical media think in this age of streaming services?



While various streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+ are competing with each other, the market for physical media such as Blu-ray and DVD continues to shrink. However, even in the film industry, there are people who are particular about physical media, as director Christopher Nolan has expressed concern that ``

distribution-only works run the risk of suddenly becoming unwatchable .''

The film fans who refuse to surrender to streaming: 'One day you'll barter bread for our DVDs' | Film | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/mar/27/the-film-fans-who-refuse-to-surrender-to-streaming-one-day-youll-barter-bread-for-our- dvds



The physical media market was 4.7 billion dollars (about 710 billion yen) in 2017, but it will shrink to 1.5 billion dollars (about 227 billion yen) by 2022. Not only are the numbers declining, but Netflix, which originally developed its business from the DVD rental business, has completely transitioned to a streaming service and will end its DVD rental business in the summer of 2023.

Netflix ends DVD rental business, you can keep unreturned DVDs - GIGAZINE


by

Michel Ngilen

One of the ways physical media survives under such circumstances is by selling to passionate fans. For example, the movie 'Oppenheimer' directed by Christopher Nolan was released in theaters overseas in 2023 and is also available on Blu-ray, but fans flocked to large stores that are reducing the handling of physical media. As a result, the first production run sold out quickly.

Amazon.co.jp | Oppenheimer [4K Ultra HD] [2023] [Region Free] DVD/Blu-ray



Director Nolan himself praises physical media as ``allowing you to have video and audio at hand.'' On the other hand, he expressed concern that ``there is a risk that the works that are only available for distribution may suddenly become unavailable.''

Christopher Nolan worries that ``distribution-only works are at risk of not being seen'' - GIGAZINE


by The Pop Culture Geek Network

Journalist J. Oliver Conroy , who wrote an article for The Guardian, also advised people to buy Blu-rays or borrow DVDs from libraries, saying, ``Distribution services simply don't offer the movies you want to watch.'' states that it has become.

Conroy also solicited opinions on the forum asking if there were people who had similar experiences to him, and received 180 emails from fans who said they still collect physical media. ``I want to protect old and unknown movies,'' ``Distribution services sometimes retroactively modify past works,'' ``The audiovisual fidelity is dramatically improved when viewed on physical media,'' and `` Opinions such as 'I like the making-of and behind-the-scenes special features,' and 'I don't like scrolling through the streaming menu' were received. Also, some people were unable to fully utilize streaming services due to connection speed issues.

A known example of modification by a distribution service is the case of the 1971 movie 'French Connection,' where scenes containing discriminatory lines against black people were cut out when distributed on Apple TV, leading to criticism from fans. It has been.

'The French Connection' has been censored and fans are furious
https://www.nme.com/news/film/the-french-connection-censored-fans-furious-3452641

Celebrities known for their love of physical media include actor Carrie Coon, who played Dr. Spengler's daughter Carrie in Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Ghostbusters: Frozen Summer. Kuhn and her husband, actor and screenwriter Tracy Letts, have revealed that they own 10,000 Blu-rays.



In addition, actor Timothy Simmons, known for his role as Jonah Ryan in the comedy-drama series 'Veep,' also spoke to Mr. Conroy, saying, ``Everyone thinks they can watch anything on streaming, but what happens when licensing issues get complicated between companies?'' , ``The work you can see now may not be seen tomorrow,'' he said, similar to director Nolan.

Recently, in order for Sony to integrate its affiliated anime distribution service ``Funimation'' with ``Crunchyroll'', which is also under its umbrella, it has been decided that the ``rights to view the digital version'' held by users who purchased physical discs from Funimation will be extinguished. Masu.

Sony closes ``Funimation,'' an anime library that was advertised as ``permanently accessible'' - GIGAZINE



Actor Matt Damon also talked about physical media, saying that it can be a source of business for films that cannot make a profit on theatrical release alone, and that when distribution becomes the focus, it becomes possible for films of the type that were hits in the 1990s to become more popular. He said that making an investment has turned into a big gamble.

On the other hand, Mr. Conroy points out that streaming services are good for films like

Bong Joon-ho's 'Parasite, ' which became the first non-English language film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, even in an age when physical media is the focus. He says that it was difficult for him to get into distribution.



In addition, Sean Fennessy of pop culture information site The Ringer, who has been using Netflix since it was a DVD rental service, said, ``I doubt that Blu-ray and DVD will return to the position they were in their heyday, but I hope that many movie fans will wake up to the benefits of physical media.'

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in Note,   Movie, Posted by logc_nt