As everyone here knows, one of the primary reasons that Blu-ray was released was to help revive lower sales in the physical media market caused by softening DVD sales. And of course I am not at all denying that Blu-ray has contributed a respectable number of sales to the home media market, though far less than what was expected of the format when it was introduced.

When Blu-ray was introduced, while DVD was nine years old by that point, there were still a lot of people that had only recently upgraded from VHS to DVD itself, and were not at all interested in upgrading yet again to a new format. Add in an effort to "encourage" consumers to make the switch from DVD to Blu-ray by having the special features that were routinely included on most major DVD releases now suddenly exclusive to the Blu-ray release was not appreciated by some people that had not made the switch to Blu-ray, and I know that at least some people lost a lot of interest in physical media as a result of this. They didn't want to upgrade to an unnecessary format, but also resented being "cheated" by having the special features no longer be included with the DVD release.

Later, when Blu-ray was starting to gain momentum, 3D Blu-ray was announced. While of course, some people were excited by this announcement, others who bought into Blu-ray relatively early were upset that they would have to upgrade yet again to be able to watch newer movies on the Blu-ray 3D format (technically another new format as it required at least a new 3D TV and 3D Blu-ray player). Also, it made some people that hadn't yet made the jump to "regular" Blu-ray hesitant to invest in a new format just for it to be "obsolete" in a few years. Following this, some major blockbuster movies started including the special features only on the 3D version of the movie, which was not appreciated by owners of regular Blu-ray that wanted the special features.

And now, of course is the arrival of yet another new format, Ultra HD Blu-ray. So in just ten years there have been three different Blu-ray formats released, each requiring at least a new TV and a new Blu-ray player to properly enjoy them. And each time, it seems like the new format is less successful than the one it is "replacing." And it seems like a lot of people of getting tired of upgrading their equipment and library with each new release. Yes, Combo Packs help, but it doesn't change the fact someone needs at least a new TV and player to properly play these movies. Also, with the "original" Blu-ray format failing to overtake DVD sales, there are some people that I know that are still content with regular DVDs and now no longer interested in investing in a "failed format" (Blu-ray Disc).

Anyway, yes, as most people have stated, DVD was an anomaly and no format was likely going to be able to match its success. But did Blu-ray itself actually do more harm than good?

Paragraphs man.

What "harm" has it done? DVD was good for its time but watching a new movie on DVD on an HD setup clearly shows the format's limitations. Blu-Ray still isn't absolutely perfect, and I've even heard of slight imperfections with the picture on UHD discs (though I'll have to see that for myself)- UHD will be a half-finished format to me until it supports 3D anyways.

No kiddin'. Unreadable.

Sorry about that. I corrected that.

Thanks for editing OP. The answer is no.

You're welcome. And I agree that while Blu-ray likely wasn't going to "save the day" it also wasn't responsible for the continued physical media slide. I only asked because sometimes I hear people blaming Blu-ray for not saving physical media, but I don't think they understand that physical media is not going back to the success of DVD.

They know that now with UHD, yet they're still doing it. There will always be money to be made in physical media and they know it. Just because we don't seem it a success doesn't mean the studios will release something. It'll be minute, but physical media will continue. Blu ray just happened to have gotten released at the advent of the digital streaming era. But it was still a success in that it brought DVD into the HD era. It's still a success, just not as big as DVD. I don't know why people continue to have the notion that it must defeat it.

I always though it was because we needed a hi def format once everyone bought flatscreens. DVD looked great on our 36" tube TV's in the 90's. On a 1080p high def set, not so much.

And I think you vastly overestimate the importance of special features to the average person. I would think that special features migrated to Blu Ray because that's what the people who cared about them were buying.

But I think the real killer of physical media was the elimination of the VOD window. Back when DVD came out, that was the only way to see the movie on release date. PPV still had a 4-6 week window before you could rent. Nowadays, you cant rent any title digitally on the day of physical release. And buy weeks before that.

Though most of those cost $6- I haven't rented many at that price.

As far as DVD's go, and no, my eyes aren't deceiving me - when it comes to new releases some look fucking great for being DVDs. I've had friends over and even they have remarked that some of the newer released DVDs look like Blu-rays sometimes. I borrow DVDs from the library if I need to see something quick. DVDs aren't going away any time soon.

Good points about needing a newer, better format to go with bigger, better TVs. What I meant was that some people blame Blu-ray, with all of its revisions (Blu-ray, 3D Blu-ray and now UHD Blu-ray) for causing consumers to be reluctant to invest in new technology if it is going to be "obsolete" in a few years because of a "new" format.

Good point about needing a better format, and I shouldn't have left it out in my original post. I just meant that softening DVD sales was also a factor in bringing Blu-ray to market.

And you're probably right about overestimating the importance of special features to the "average person." I just heard so many people complaining about the special features being removed from the DVD versions that I just assumed more people shared that idea.

And an interesting point about VOD, and I'm sure that is a contributing factor as well.

In answer to the question posed in this thread: No

Physical media is simply losing the battle to new technology.

No. The only thing Blu-ray has done any harm to is HD DVD. And my wallet.

I wonder if we'll ever see them put movies on USB flash drives or SD cards as they're getting bigger, cheaper and more reliable.

Imagine a 4K movie on a 256GB SDXC card in a player the size of the iPhone. And there'd be a nice small case the size of a baseball card for this movie. Collectors would go crazy for that.

You know, the one hassle collecting creates is storage. THAT would've made a difference before services like VUDU and iTunes came along. Having a VUDU account as well as my Blu-ray collection, I can see why many have ditched packaged media altogether. I grew up in the age of LPS, Cassettes, VHS, DVDs and BDs... but todays kids are raised on downloads and physical media holds little interest for most of them.

Agree 100%.

Netflix is the single biggest reason why physical media is on the decline. It was the right service at the right time, capitalizing the attention of new movie consumers away from physical media. When Netflix aggressively shifted from a normal rental service based on physical discs to a streaming platform, it introduced the concept to millions of users.

I even canceled my Blu-ray/DVD service from them and have stuck with the streaming service ever since.

The fact that they also have incredible exclusive programming cemented the deal further and you have other services doing the same. WE WIN!

I think that it's a complex question that's difficult to discuss in it's entirety because there are so many opinions and mindsets.

Personally, I think that the introduction of Blu-ray had several strikes against it from the start. To begin with, the concept of owning a personal collection, let alone a large one, of films and/or tv shows was still relatively new. At most 20 years old, and for most people less so, as there weren't many VHS releases in 1987-88 at consumer prices.

I worked for several years at a video store, when new VHS were being released at consumer friendly msrp prices, and many of the people buying them were of the opinion that they were building personal libraries that would last their lifetimes. That they could share them with their children and grandkids, and could then be passed on.

I don't know how those people reacted to the introduction of DVD. I can imagine that some stopped buying, some adopted grudgingly, but others were more enthusiastic, as it was clear that there were major differences between VHS and DVD. It could be easily explained and argued that VHS wouldn't last someone's lifetime, but DVD would. Here is the new format that will last your lifetime, that you can share and pass on to future generations. And so many did.

When Blu-ray was introduced it needed to clearly be as big of a leap, and as easily an explainable one, for the majority of those people to make the transition. And I would argue that it needed to do even more, because here was the call to rebuy one's collection for (possibly) the 3rd time in less than 20 years. At which point I'm sure that some got to thinking "And I'll need to rebuy for the 4th time in 2015-16, and a fifth time in maybe 2024", and No. Just no.

My guess is that the idea that we as consumers were supposed to rebuy the same media library every 7-10 years sunk in, and people asked themselves if they really wanted to pay $200, $400, or more over the course of their lifetimes to own their favorite films in the various formats, let alone those that they enjoyed less.

Separately, some people didn't see or understand the difference between DVD and BD. Some do but don't care. I've heard from a small number who prefer SD, or at least most of the time, as they want a fantasy experience which is different from the real world, and too much definition can detract, or even ruin, that.

After building up libraries for so long then some might have lost enthusiasm for the process, or realized how long it would take them to watch everything, let alone rewatch everything enough to make their purchases worthwhile. Further, a major recession occurred about the same time, which meant less disposable income, but also that lots of people started trying to sell collections, or part of them, at about the same time. That drove prices down, and soured people further on the monetary value of their collections.

I feel that all of these factors contributed to the current environment, as well as those that the op mentioned. Additionally, a fractured consumer base hurts physical media overall, resulting in some titles not being released in the format of a consumer's personal preference. And so some get angry with the studio, or the format they find inferior, and there are less sales of that title (which justifies the manufacturer's decision not to release in the other format and similar titles in the future), and possibly more in the future as that consumer might be less enthusiastic in general.

I fear this will only be exacerbated going forward, as physical retailers are shrinking their space at the same time that high-profile titles will need even more shelf space. Star Wars VII needs more room for it's various formats, and so some smaller or middle releases don't get any space. Since they don't get carried then they are only available online, or get canceled, which frustrates the people looking for them even more. And which further damages physical media going forward.

It could be said that that's an extreme example, but imagine how many more titles could be carried if there was only a single format filling the shelves of any physical store?

I think that the introduction of Blu-ray, partially due to circumstances outside of it's control, has caused definite harm to the physical media market going forward. 3D and Ultra HD Blu-ray have continued that. I don't believe that the entire physical market will disappear overnight, next year, or even in the next five years. But as a whole it's wounded, bleeding, and if some of these factors had been handled differently then I think it could have been at least somewhat healthier.

The question for me is how much longer will physical media last, can it survive in an increasingly harsh environment? And if not, will non-physical be a better or worse alternative by the time that it becomes the only choice?

But of course that's just me and others have different perspectives, such as "I want the film in the best possible format" no matter what else results. That's their right, and for that mindset then I'm sure that the answer to the original question could never be yes.

Paragraphs man. So many of them.

I know, I wanted to do one continuous wall of text, but it seemed like people in earlier posts weren't into that. I could be wrong though, it's not too late to edit it!?!

But reading it all is well worth it. The meaning of life is there, right there! Or it's just one person's extended train of thought. But one person can change the world, right? This probably wasn't it, but how can we really know?

Only by reading it, and then we can know, and knowing is half the battle. Which is what G.I. Joe taught me. And if we can't trust a cartoon, which was really an extended marketing advertisement aimed at children, then who can we trust?

Very good points, Strapped4Cash. You made a lot of the points that I was trying to make. As you pointed out, the idea of movie collecting was still relatively new, even when Blu-ray was first being announced.

The introduction of DVD, which was clearly superior to VHS, combined with no competing format, was obviously something that many people viewed as a safe choice that they could really invest in.

But the introduction of HD-DVD and Blu-ray relatively quickly after DVD was released changed all that. Some people no longer felt comfortable investing large amounts of money into a collection when it was now clear that no physical media media format was going to be the sole format for a long period of time, and as a result some people either decided to stop buying movies altogether or to simply stick with DVD. And as stated before, the quick releases of 3D Blu-ray followed by Ultra HD Blu-ray has not helped convince consumers to invest in any physical media format for "the long haul," which obviously hasn't helped physical media at all.

I'll never get the people who complain that the introduction of a new format "forces" them to re-buy all their movies again in that format. If you bought a movie on VHS in the 80s and it still looks good to you, you can still watch that and nobody will MAKE you buy it in any newer format!