Say what you will about the state of streaming services (and there’s a LOT of legitimately bad things to say), but it definitely has value. There are shows and movies that never would’ve been made in the pre-streaming era. There are also shows that never would’ve found the audience they did had it not been for streaming.
I can attest to this. I bought a Netflix subscription in 2010. And it’s through Netflix that I discovered shows like “Parks and Recreation,” “Breaking Bad,” and “Bojack Horseman.” Some of those shows were airing on regular TV at the time, but I didn’t get into them until I was able to binge entire seasons on my own time. For that, I will always be grateful.
Unfortunately, streaming services have been on the front lines of the “enshitification” process that has consumed so many industries. Netflix is no longer the one-stop shop for watching all your favorite shows. Now, you have to purchase multiple streaming services, which are constantly increasing their prices and removing content. It’s already at a point where the cumulative cost of streaming services exceeds the cost of cable. Even when these streaming services are unprofitable, they continue to propagate. And they continue to squeeze every last penny they can from consumers.
This is why physical media still matters. Those boxes of DVDs, VHS tapes, Blu-Rays, and Laserdisks may take up space and collect dust. But they still hold a great deal of value. And as the enshitification process accelerates with streaming, that value will likely continue to increase. It’s not the same value as an investment. These aren’t vintage baseball cards or rare comic books. This is simply the media you love in a tangible, physical form that you can watch without a monthly subscription or an internet connection.
If you’re under a certain age, that may not seem remarkable. If you’re around my age or older, you understand on some levels why this is necessary. Before streaming, this was all we had to preserve the shows we loved. TV has been finite for most of its history. If you miss an episode or can’t follow a show, your only option was to get the VHS tapes or the box set of DVDs. Playing, organizing, and storing them was a pain. But they were yours.
They couldn’t be removed from a platform.
They couldn’t be frozen in an account.
They couldn’t purged due to a rights dispute.
These shows were now yours to possess without paying a regular subscription to a company. There will always be value in that kind of control. There will also be efforts to undermine that value. Before streaming, TV and movie studios actively fought against the VCR. They believed it undermined their business model. And it did to some extent, but they adapted their model. The same thing happened with music in wake of Napster. Expect every streaming company to do the exact same thing.
We’re already seeing it in subtle ways. Just take a moment to look at your computer, laptop, or tablet. Does it have a DVD/Blu-Ray player? It probably doesn’t. Chances are you need to buy an extra attachment for that. And most of the attachments are of poor quality. For most people, their primary method for playing physical media is gaming consoles like the Playstation or the X-Box.
But that may not be an option for much longer. The current console cycle is set to end. And there are numerous rumors that the next iteration of these consoles won’t even have a disk drive. That means the primary way of playing physical media will become even more limited.
That’s why it’s important to be proactive. If you don’t have a DVD/Blu-Ray players at all, look into getting one. If you can, buy one with a built-in screen. That’s what I invested in. I don’t use it too often, but I treat it like an umbrella or a condom. It’s better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.
Also, once a year I take stock in my favorite shows and how I access them. If there’s a particular show that is leaving a streaming service or is hard to find, I get the box set. Shows like “Parks and Recreation” or every X-Men animated series ever made have a secure place in my collection. And I intend to hold onto them, even if they remain on streaming platforms.
There’s no question that streaming services have their place. Their accessibility and convenience is beyond dispute. But if you truly love a show or movie, don’t assume that it’ll always be on a streaming service. Don’t even assume it’ll always be accessible. Make sure the shows and movies you love most have a physical form. This isn’t some hipster mentality about the quality of old formats like vinyl. This is about understanding that as great as streaming can be, there will never be a substitute for having something you love take a tangible form.
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