Meet the New Faces of Media

It’s no secret that studios are looking for other revenue streams than just DVD. The mark up just isn’t there anymore and, in fact, most retailers have been using them as a loss leader to get customers into their stores for other items. Again, this isn’t new, as it’s been like that for about two years. While DVD will continue to be pressed until 2030, the big question is: what’s after DVD?

DVD is about as perfect as home entertainment got, and while Blu-ray is technically better, it’s not that big of a jump from DVD, as DVD was from VHS. It might seem certain that Blu-ray would be the appropriate successor to DVD, but with the early glitches, the once high prices, and then right as that all lowered, a Great Recession hit. The sales of the Blu-ray format in discs and players has been steadily increasing, but can Blu-ray really make that stride, and fast?

The one thing that is secretly happening now, that you might not be fully aware of is certain retailers are phasing out 20% (at least) of their DVDs and are seeking heavy promotion on Digital Services, more than housing discs. Soon at Best Buy, you will see a 20-25% decrease in what they have on their shelves, and a new, aggressive approach to these services. What are they? Get ready to Meet the New Faces of Media.

Netflix (site)

This service has been around a good while, as it’s a popular choice service to rent DVDs and now Blu-rays. Recently, they have really opened up their Instant View service, that features instant streaming online of movies. This has become a popular form for people to watch movies, with Netflix’s aggressive push into the XBox 360, PS3, and now Wii online communities, along with the application being available in certain Blu-ray players. This easy access in one choice reason sales of DVDs have stalled drastically and has made Blu-ray sales tougher for the format. They’re the best service now, a key reason Blockbuster is struggling to survive and why Hollywood Video is all but dead.

CinemaNow (site)

Similar to Video-On-Demand, Best Buy is aggressive promoting this service. One key difference is that a customer can order the film much like VOD or just rent the film for a one-time price. It acts much like a virtual Blockbuster, while being a sister company to Napster. Certain LG Blu-ray players have this app and it is widely used on the Best Buy website, with gift cards in store. You’ll be hearing a lot more in the coming months about this service, as it gains market share and attention from the retailer.

Hulu (site)

Hulu was once a popular website to view TV shows you once missed, but now they’re coming into your home via iPhone app, XBox 360 online community, PS3, and even in your Vizio and Sony HDTVs, and with a new service called Hulu Plus. Their increased presence has supposedly put fear into Netflix (here).

Redbox (site)

It’s the Blockbuster for the person who’s in a hurry. It’s $1 rental fee a day became very popular, making it an easier alternative to Netflix. It’s quite easy to use, yet their selection is limited to mostly recent and new releases. There’s a kiosk at almost every Wal-Mart, a huge plus for the service.

Most of these services offer one thing and it’s becoming the DVD killer: movies at your finger tips. Everything is moving to digital downloading, and while studios have offered digital copies of the film you just bought on DVD or Blu-ray, it hasn’t helped sales. The iPhone, iPod, and iPad are disc medium killers. In an age of convenience and instant access, the biggest losers are the collectors. Studios will adapt, but collectors like to own things. Things they can touch, feel, alphabetize, and own. You can’t really own a digital download. This will certain put a hurting on smaller studios, such as Blue Underground, Synapse Films, Unearthed Films, Kino, Criterion Collection, Anchor Bay, Shout! Factory, and Dragon Dynasty.

Many of those studios are for fans of cult or arthouse movies. They are fully aware of their market and they continue to please that market with quality releases of the best picture/audio and extras. But now most of those companies have just reverted to re-releasing their catalog on Blu-ray. Criterion is offering something that could help these other studios. On their website, you can rent almost any Criterion film online and if you choose to buy it, they deduct the rental fee off of the DVD or Blu-ray. If not, you have a rental window to watch the film as many times as you wish. That’s a cool service. Online stores like Amazon will see increased traffic for DVD and Blu-ray sales, that’s for sure, because people over 30 are a little hesitant to just go fully digital with their movies.

The face of home media is rapidly changing, but is it for the better? For once, we might not get the choice, if retailers like Best Buy have any say. The conclusion is still up in the air, but some people use these services for rental purposes and buy what they really like. The majority? They use these service extensively. As a collector, I want the film I buy to have the best extras associated with the film and the best picture and audio. Most online services aren’t in full 1080p. With 3D TVs, films, and Blu-rays, maybe disc medium won’t be as dead soon as some predict. But 3D is just a little added value, currently in its home entertainment infancy, and online is large and in charge. Can this all coexist? Should it coexist? At least these services here in the States, are doing a positive battle against torrent sites.

And with the Recession, convenience and price come first, something discs don’t have the luxury to say. Thoughts?