Why I’m back to buying Blu-rays
29 May, 2023
I was a huge fan of streaming when it first started. Netflix created a revolution that seemed fantastic to me at the time. The huge library of content and the ease with which it was possible to access that content was perfect.
But over the years, things began to change. First, content began to be spread across multiple services. Then the prices kept rising. And to top it all off, we started to lose content. Honestly I don't think it's a big deal when content goes from one service to another, but when the licensor can just take it all away, then it becomes frightening.
Yes, Netflix made watching easy, but you're always at the whim of their shareholders.
- They'll raise the subscription price if they want more money.
- They'll lower the bitrate to save on operating costs.
- They'll remove content if it means they can screw the creators out of royalties or licensing costs.
In the end, because they own the content, they can do whatever they want and there's not much we, the users, can do about it. All we end up getting for subscribing is a licence to watch whatever's available, and I don't like that.
That's why I'm voting with my wallet and I’m back on the physical train.
With movies I'm slowly building up a nice little collection, buying 4K Blu-rays here and there. For TV shows, I still go back and forth between the many available streaming platforms, as I try to stay a few months here and a few months there. But for films, I'm going all in on the physical medium. And it's not just the fact that I can own the film and watch it whenever I want that interests me. It's the quality of the content. Have you ever seen what Netflix looks like in comparison to a 4K Blu-ray disc? Here's a good example:
