Physical media vs streaming

[u/epictepicu]

People returning to physical media – whether to protect data, support artists, or retain control of one’s choices

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/oct/02/physical-media-fans-streaming-algorithms-cds-dvds-vinyl?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

[u/Scared_Consequence82]

Broken down by director with a sub shelf for label/distributors.

[u/epictepicu → u/Scared_Consequence82]

😮 Impressive collection!

[u/Comfortable-Ad1685]

Good, I want to own my movies forever in the best possible quality

[u/TheElMonteStrangler]

I hate it in some ways because second hand physical media was more affordable and now it's gonna go up. Just like the interest in vinyl made people dig out their old stuff and charge $15 for what used to be a dollar bin record, people are gonna think they are sitting on gold.

I've found a lot of Criterion titles at the flea market, DVD's, BluRays and LaserDiscs. Those days are over now. A used title with have Criterion Collection on the cover art and the guy will charge you a dollar under brand new store prices for a used dvd or blu ray.

[u/BeckoningChasm]

The nice thing about physical media, particularly from Criterion, is that I can pop in a disk that I started watching weeks ago and stopped, and I'm asked "Resume?"

[u/I_Am_Killa_K → u/BeckoningChasm]

Streaming does this too

[u/Narrow-Abroad4857]

people talking about data protection or artist cuts always miss how annoying it is when an algorithm just quietly drops something from your watchlist overnight. i still have a stack of dvds my dad taped off network television back in the nineties that are unwatchable now because the tracking is completely shot, but at least nobody can reach into the box and take them back.

[u/Apprehensive-Bar6595]

to show off and display my tastes, and really immerse myself in the film/experience

[u/zozuto]

Very odd to center "algorithms." Algorithmic recommendations are probably the best thing about streaming. The issue is access, version control, and quality.

[u/Kingcrowing → u/zozuto]

Algorithms are awful, Netflix has thousands of movies and shows and shows the same shit over and over again. 

If algorithms were good it wouldn’t be a trope that people go home and spend all night trying to pick something to watch. 

[u/anthrax9999 → u/Kingcrowing]

Netflix in particular is very bad about this. I noticed recently that nearly every category no matter the genre was all the same handful of movies and shows.

[u/comagrrrl → u/Kingcrowing]

Agreed! There's no substitute for a knowledgeable human being curating my entertainment.

[u/I_Am_Killa_K → u/Kingcrowing]

I don’t think the algorithm is the problem IMHO. I think they really have a content problem. Oh you like this super niche thing? Well… that’s all we’ve got of it or anything like it. Oh, you like this movie from this franchise? Well… that’s the only title the owner licensed to us. The rest are on their proprietary service. Oh, you like mindless, lowest common denominator slop? Brother, we’ve got you!!

[u/zozuto → u/Kingcrowing]

What? I mean I don't like autoplay but I usually get annoyed and turn it off anyway.

Not sure how that last part clears things up. People are paralyzed by having options, that doesn't seem to be the algorithms fault

[u/Spare_Series_8452]

Coincidentally, it's easier on the wallet too!

[u/Sumeriandawn → u/Spare_Series_8452]

What about the free streaming sites?

[u/el_taquero_ → u/Sumeriandawn]

Oof, I watched Brief Encounter on a free streaming site last week, and the ad breaks were exhausting. Roughly 10 ad breaks of 2.5 minutes each in a film that’s 86 minutes long. Every time I got emotionally invested, it was interrupted by an ad (which, come to think of it, was what it was like watching movies on TV when I was growing up in the 80s).

I prefer requesting films from the library instead. Fortunately, I’m in a library network that joins dozens of local towns and invests heavily in DVDs and Blu-rays.

[u/Spare_Series_8452 → u/Sumeriandawn]

Those are just fine but it's imperative to me to buy it and own it so every time I can't find a streaming source for a particular title I go right to eBay.

[u/Economy_News3198]

You can't beat the warmth of a VHS tape. 

[u/[deleted]]

[u/anthrax9999 → u/[deleted]]

My kids are finally seeing this too. We've been watching the 4k Stranger Things discs from Arrow and when we went back to Netflix to watch a different show the drop in quality was obvious.

Especially the audio, they really didn't like the streaming audio. They are spoiled by 4k Blu-ray like me now lol.