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For Those Who Still Think Physical Media Has No Place in the 21st century… (1 Viewer)

Carl David

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It may seem archaic by most here I think but I am going to remain a physical media only purchaser of films at the moment.

My reasons for this are numerous.

Firstly, this may seem quirky but I like the privilege of being able to physically view my films when deciding on which film to watch. The process of looking at the cover and the plot sypnosis on the back etc. This helps me to visualize/remember the film from when I last watched it and enable me to make a decision more clearly on whether I want to watch the film again or not in that particular moment.

I don't know how other people's viewing habits are but I have to be in a particular type of mood to watch a certain type/genre of film depening on how I am feeling. Looking through my collection helps me to do this. Digitally, this option does not appeal to me as I feel I will probably spend longer looking through the titles before I make a decision. This could become problematic with hundreds to choose from. Physically, it is more effiicent as you can skim through your hundreds of titles very quickly and visually take in each movie etc. For someone like me I reckon I would probably take at least an hour to make a decision if I was looking online.

Does this make sense?

Secondly, I like to do things like have an 80's movie binge and watch 80s only films all week etc. I don't think this is practical through streaming as I have tried looking for some lately to see if I could do it with some titles I was interested to watch and a lot of them were not even available to stream, rent or download.

However, I do have to also admit there was some titles online that I did not think were available and I was really surprised. Shy People being an example and this title is only on VHS. It has never been released on DVD or Blu Ray. I was impressed by that.

Lastly, for any film in my collection I know I can watch at any time I want. Choose a title and play the disc. Online not so much.
I may have watched a particular film through streaming one year and then decide a year later that I want to watch it again. No such luck. It has been removed so now I do not have an option to watch it. True, it may come back again only a month later and I can watch it then.
My problem is I want to watch that film now. I am in the mood now to watch that film but I can't.

This is a problem for me and in fact it would probably annoy me now that I know I do not have the option/privilege to watch it.

I understand it is cheaper to stream and I applaud that but I am happy to spend more money building my own physical collection and having the freedom to watch any of them any time I want to suit my mood.
However, having had a look at a few titles online I have noticed that there are some films that are not available to stream. Only for rental and download. These options are nearly the same as purchasing a Blu-Ray itself and in a way could be more expensive.

For example, the films I saw were £3.50 for rental or £7.99 download (UK). Maybe someone can explain otherwise but if I rent the film for £3.50 (not sure the expiry time of it) and then decide to wach it a year later I am going to have to pay £3.50 again am I not? I don't like the idea of downloading digital films due to unreliability/flaws in hardware technology.

I don't know about anyone else but with some films I might want to watch them 3,4, 5 or more times in a year. If I do that I am better off buying the disc. Many Blu Ray films can be purchased from new for less than £9.99 now excluding Criterion and a few others.

I know many here will think I am trying to justify prolonging my collection of physical media but I think my reasons are more than justified in my stubbornness to succumb to the utopian lost horizon of what is streaming/digital movie watching.
 
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jcroy

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One of the first Netflix originals, House Of Cards, sorta came about that way. Netflix noticed that their viewers especially loved streaming political dramas, serialized shows, American versions of British properties, Kevin Spacey, and the work of David Fincher. So they hired a writer known for political plays to work with Fincher to develop an American version of the British series House of Cards, and it was a big hit for them.

I was thinking more along the lines of an analogy to what makes a particular video game really "addictive" that many players are willing to spend many weeks/months to "finish" the game. That is without any major frustrations nor any boredom.

For example, can film makers or tv writers come up with something equivalent ?
 

Josh Steinberg

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I was thinking more along the lines of an analogy to what makes a particular video game really "addictive" that many players are willing to spend many weeks/months to "finish" the game. That is without any major frustrations nor any boredom.

For example, can film makers or tv writers come up with something equivalent ?

I don't know that they have to. In that sense, Netflix itself is the game -- as long as you're watching their service, you're playing their game, and if they continue to invest in programming that you like, there is no "finish" and they keep getting revenue from you. Is Netflix automatically playing the next episode all that different from a video game advancing to the next level? So I think in the case of Netflix, all of that data isn't being collected with a goal towards creating the perfect singular addiction, but making the service itself indispensable. Does that make sense?
 

jcroy

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Offhand I don't know. I haven't really been on Netflix for awhile, and not really familiar with their current newer stuff.

More generally with really any tv show (or movie series), I've found that most of my frustrations are with shows which had excellent first few seasons, but turned to shit subsequently. I've always found that once something seems boring to me, I largely drop it and usually don't go back.

In the "addiction" lingo, it basically like being injected with naltrexone in the middle of an opiate + cocaine speedball type high, in analogy to a show/episode/movie turning to shit or outright boring. In a different "addiction" analogy that doesn't involve illegal substances, it is like being in the middle of a "runner's high" while doing long distance running, and then abruptly falling asleep when I get home. I don't know if there's any other semi-obvious analogous descriptions.
 

bmasters9

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Even statistics which might look meaningless initially, may very well be telling something about a show.

For example, stuff like how far into an episode does a person pause or hit the stop button altogether. Too many doing this in the middle of the first/pilot episode, might suggest it is either a really boring episode and/or viewers are simply not immediately connecting to any of the characters at all.

Why would Netflix keep track of how many tuned out from the first or pilot episodes owing to finding them boring/not liking the characters?
 

jcroy

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Why would Netflix keep track of how many tuned out from the first or pilot episodes owing to finding them boring/not liking the characters?

It would be very easy to record such statistics. For folks in the data analysis business, they look at everything which is available.

In that particular example, they would know what NOT to do next time. Statistically it would suggest that type of episode/film and/or style of writing + execution, might not be attracting many viewers. If their intention is to keep people watching, tuning out due to boredom would be counterproductive.
 

bmasters9

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It would be very easy to record such statistics. For folks in the data analysis business, they look at everything which is available.

In that particular example, they would know what NOT to do next time. Statistically it would suggest that type of episode/film and/or style of writing + execution, might not be attracting many viewers. If their intention is to keep people watching, tuning out due to boredom would be counterproductive.

And hopefully Netflix would take that into account and try to make better shows w/better characters, writing and execution.
 

jcroy

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For services like Netflix, etc .... I suspect they're primarily dependent on people subscribing every month and not on advertising.

If they're producing new original content which too many people are tuning out or avoiding outright, such bored viewers might not subscribe the next month.

So knowing exactly what keeps the viewer's attention glued to the screen, becomes a huge priority than ever before.
 

jcroy

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I know many here will think I am trying to justify prolonging my collection of physical media but I think my reasons are more than justified in my stubbornness to succumb to the utopian lost horizon of what is streaming/digital movie watching.

I would be somewhat surprised if many people would consider flat-rate streaming to be "utopian".

You have to set your sights much higher, such as holodecks. :)
 

jcroy

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Firstly, this may seem quirky but I like the privilege of being able to physically view my films when deciding on which film to watch. The process of looking at the cover and the plot sypnosis on the back etc. This helps me to visualize/remember the film from when I last watched it and enable me to make a decision more clearly on whether I want to watch the film again or not in that particular moment.

I don't know how other people's viewing habits are but I have to be in a particular type of mood to watch a certain type/genre of film depening on how I am feeling. Looking through my collection helps me to do this. Digitally, this option does not appeal to me as I feel I will probably spend longer looking through the titles before I make a decision. This could become problematic with hundreds to choose from. Physically, it is more effiicent as you can skim through your hundreds of titles very quickly and visually take in each movie etc. For someone like me I reckon I would probably take at least an hour to make a decision if I was looking online.

Does this make sense?

(On a tangent).

I know this mindset very well from first-hand experience, but not in context of dvd/bluray.

This is exactly how I'm thinking and feeling when I'm going through my own personal book library, and finding some paper hardcover books to read.


Unfortunately I do not think nor feel this way at all when it comes to my dvd/bluray collection. Not even during the peak time periods of my ocd compulsive impulse buying binges of dvds and blurays.
 

jcroy

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I don't know that they have to.

...

Does that make sense?



To be more precise, I'm thinking of whether all that analysis of streaming tracking data will be able to find an elusive "BF Skinner Box" formula for producing tv episodes or films.

Basically what is observed in casino slot machines to be extremely addictive, and how other entertainment activites puts one into a "trance zone" (such as certain video games, etc ...).

https://www.theverge.com/2015/5/6/8...ne-gambling-addiction-psychology-mobile-games

https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/...11/did-you-know-these-7-surprises-about-slots
 
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jcroy

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I understand it is cheaper to stream and I applaud that but I am happy to spend more money building my own physical collection and having the freedom to watch any of them any time I want to suit my mood.

This is the same thing I was always saying to myself, during my ocd compulsive impulse buying binges of dvds/blurays.

In practice for me, it didn't really make much of a difference in the end. Especially when 99%+ of the episodes and movies I watch are only ever viewed once or twice.

More generally, I see a similar behavior and patterns in my older relatives, where they spent an entire lifetime accumulating many tapes, discs, books, etc .... After they retired, they hardly ever used any of the stuff they had. For example after my father retired, he ended up just watching tv all day tuned to CNN (or another 24 hours news channel) and almost never used any of the cds, tapes, dvds, vinyl records, books, etc .... he had collected over the past 50+ years.
 

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Does this make sense?

Sounds like someone needs to listen to Episode 3 =)
https://www.hometheaterforum.com/co...video-buy-rent-or-stream.361272/#post-4717621

The ultimate answer here: "you do you".

Everyone is dealing with this issue differently. I personally Buy Rent AND stream (not so much rent, but not never). My cohost @Brian Dobbs remains buy only. Others have different strategies.

We're railing against an incoming tide tho with physical. The future is plainly digital only. It's just a matter of time and we all get to decide how much we'll fight it, but that fight will inevitably be in vain, leaving only our pain in the meantime.
 

jcroy

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For perspective, my father and several other uncles were early adopters of the audio cd format back in the mid 1980s. They were hardcore into classical music and some 1950s era rock of their youth (such as Elvis).

I remember back in the day, my father and some uncles would get together and have "listening sessions" where they listened to various then-new cds they purchased on their expensive stereo systems. Basically devoting their full attention to listening to classical music pieces from start to finish, and talking about the sound quality and/or musicianship of the cd recordings.


Fast forward to the present day, my father and uncles don't do this anymore. (These "listening sessions" more or less ended sometime around 20 years ago). My uncles pretty much do the same thing as my father does all day after they all retired: watching tv all day tuned to CNN (or BBC, Fox, etc ...).

Ever since, all their large cd collections have been collecting a lot of dust.
 

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I don't know about anyone else but with some films I might want to watch them 3,4, 5 or more times in a year. If I do that I am better off buying the disc.
If I know I'm going to watch a movie several times, I'll buy the disc. But I think we tend to seriously overestimate how many times we're going to watch something. I have DVDs from 20 years ago that have only been watched once, if at all. There are really only a handful of films that I tend to watch over and over. There are also some that I know I won't watch much, but still like having - but in all honestly, that amounts to a few dozen titles.
 

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Around 2012, I got an app on my phone that let me scan the barcodes on my discs to create a listing of what I own, and I’ve kept track of what I’ve watched. It’s been really eye-opening to actually have the data on what gets watched and what doesn’t. There’s the handful of things that are in perpetual rotation, then the things watched less often but still revisited with relative frequency (maybe not every year but every other year or every three years), then the stuff that’s been watched once or twice and will either get seen again in ten years or not again at all, and then the stuff that seemed like a good buy at the time but that haven’t been touched at all.
 

Carl David

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(On a tangent).

I know this mindset very well from first-hand experience, but not in context of dvd/bluray.

This is exactly how I'm thinking and feeling when I'm going through my own personal book library, and finding some paper hardcover books to read.


Unfortunately I do not think nor feel this way at all when it comes to my dvd/bluray collection. Not even during the peak time periods of my ocd compulsive impulse buying binges of dvds and blurays.

Interestingly I do not seem to have the same condition with relation to my book collection.

I only ever read them once but I stil keep them (collect?). I have never read a book twice in my life I don't think.
I still think it is important to keep them just in case I may need to reference them in some capacity despie how unlikely that is ever to occurr.

I do to a lesser degree maybe select a book to read from my mood but it is less extreme than when I decide to watch a film.
 

Carl David

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This is the same thing I was always saying to myself, during my ocd compulsive impulse buying binges of dvds/blurays.

In practice for me, it didn't really make much of a difference in the end. Especially when 99%+ of the episodes and movies I watch are only ever viewed once or twice.

More generally, I see a similar behavior and patterns in my older relatives, where they spent an entire lifetime accumulating many tapes, discs, books, etc .... After they retired, they hardly ever used any of the stuff they had. For example after my father retired, he ended up just watching tv all day tuned to CNN (or another 24 hours news channel) and almost never used any of the cds, tapes, dvds, vinyl records, books, etc .... he had collected over the past 50+ years.

You know what. If I ever make it to retirement I will probably do the same thing and just casually watch TV every day and stream movies.

I can understand the mentality from doing that once in retirement.
 

Carl David

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If I know I'm going to watch a movie several times, I'll buy the disc. But I think we tend to seriously overestimate how many times we're going to watch something. I have DVDs from 20 years ago that have only been watched once, if at all. There are really only a handful of films that I tend to watch over and over. There are also some that I know I won't watch much, but still like having - but in all honestly, that amounts to a few dozen titles.

The discs I am buying generally are films that I intend to watch repeatedly over time. Trying to be objective I think most of the films I buy are considered excellent films whether by critics or audiences alike.

I don't have 100+ 80s slasher films in my collection or every 50s Sci-Fi B picture ever released or an abundance of Schlock etc.

In fact I don't even think I have more than 1 film in each category of those types. I'd like to think my collection is predominantly functional.

I am not saying that there is anything wrong with those types of films and I am sure many people who have large collection of those type of films enjoy them and appreciate them.

However, my impression is there are probably a lot of people who buy stuff like this but probably hardly watch any of it at least not more than once. It seems to be more compulsive than anything else.

How can anyone with thousands of films in their library seriously think they are going to watch even half of their collection again?

With my current collection and my list of films that I want to watch/buy I think my collection will probaly be around 500 films or so. These are mainly films from 1940s onward with the odd one from the silent era etc. As I am in my late 30s I probably have slightly more films from the 1980s & 1990s.

I think that is a trait many people have in relation to their age. If someone grew up in the 1950s & 1960s then they will probably appreciate/enjoy films from that era more than any other.

Once I have seen all the films I want to and my collection tops off around 500 or so I will probably then just stream movies and TV shows and perhaps just randomly/casually watch present day films and maybe the odd older type film that I may not have seen or try to watch more foreign films both new and old. It will be more experimental which is what I think many people do now with members on here.
At least that is the impression I get.
 

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