It’s the end of an era following an announcement that Best Buy will stop selling physical media at its stores and online in 2024. Best Buy was at one time the pinnacle epitome of the place to go for purchasing physical media ranging from CDs to VHS>DVD>HD DVD>Blu-Ray>4K discs as well as a goto for video games spanning many generations and makes of consoles and PCs, and now that will soon be just memory. Bill Hunt (The Digital Bits) first broke the news of the pivotal shift for one of America’s last remaining big-box tech stores.
Per The Digital Bits:
“All right, folks… we’ve got a little bit of a whopper for you today. And so as not to bury the lede, let’s get right to it…
The Digital Bits has learned from industry sources—and we’ve confirmed it with multiple sources now—that Best Buy plans to exit the physical media business for good next year, possibly as soon as the end of Q1 2024.“
Bill confirmed that video games and Blu-Ray, DVD, and 4K discs were going to be dropped from Best Buy’s physical and online stores. Not long after this exclusive news was revealed Variety and Media Play News reached out to the retailer and were given the following statement from a Best Buy representative.
Per Variety:
“To state the obvious, the way we watch movies and TV shows is much different today than it was decades ago,” a Best Buy spokesperson said in a statement to Variety. “Making this change gives us more space and opportunity to bring customers new and innovative tech for them to explore, discover and enjoy.”
Even though Best Buy will stop selling physical media at its stores it doesn’t quite signal the end of the industry, yet. The Digital Bits also reports that Walmart currently holds around 45% market share making it the largest seller of video discs, even managing to outsell Amazon. Target continues to sell physical media as well but has been reducing its inventory in recent years. However, it was only around six months ago that the UK supermarket chain Tesco announced that it would stop selling physical media games in its stores. The times are changing and from online streaming to downloading, the end of physical media could be near.
Discussion (8 replies)
Join Discussion →I have a friend at work that buys Blu-ray's still, but he may be the only one I know that still does.
I only do for special 4K UHD stuff (Maverick, Dune, etc). The bulk of my old DVD library sold for pennies on the dollar, but most of that stuff is on my server. Same for CDs but you can't give that stuff away. I recently had to buy actual CDs for some music for the wifey that I couldn't find online to buy digitally (older stuff).... they got ripped and put on server + phones, and those CDs may never see a laser ever again.
If someone had asked me 25 years ago how movies/music would be sold in the future, I would have said either better/high capacity optical or something like a SD card. I was sorta half right. But 25 years ago the thought of streaming DVD (or better) quality video over the internet would have been considered witchcraft. I had 128k DSL and that was cutting edge blazing fast in 1998. I mean I was still renting discs from Netflix until a couple years ago.
Also.... how is Best Buy still in business? I mean I try to throw some money at them now and then, but it's not like I actually go to a physical store and pick stuff out. I just do it so Amazon doesn't get 100% of my money.
I too have a friend who maintains a movie collection of blu-rays. Some years ago he replaced his entire DVD collection (well most of it) with BDs. Now there's Ultra HD BDs, but he refuses to buy those along with a player to run those discs. He said he already replaced his library once, he doesn't feel like doing it again.
Everyone else I know is like me, they just stick with DVD/BD rips (or they use streaming services, which I don't do).
I still buy discs for the things I really care about getting the best quality for but it's a mix between BB and Amazon, depending on who has the best price.
On occasion I will buy something for the wife - when I see a movie she likes in 4K, i'll buy it so she has it as a collectors item, more or less.
I have a ton of DVDs on a shelf, but they are all circa late 1990s / early 2K and I haven't really bought any since Netflix first came around (when they mailed the DVDs out, the one that just retired). I am a hair away from just donating them to a local library or charity.
Yea I have a few storage tubs of DVD's. I'm loathe to part with them. Some like the original Dune you're not going to find 'better' versions of. Same with my Superman Collectors edition.
Yep, that reminds me, you rarely see the extended/alternate/directors/etc versions on the monthly streaming services (some exceptions but for the most part they're not there). You can buy some on Amazon/Vudu but a lot of the older ones are lost to time now. Those are versions I too have been collecting for decades.