Quoting GSyren:

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Quoting Danae Cassandra:

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I think the point is more that the market isn't growing.  People are still buying physical media, but it's the same people.  It's an issue we're seeing at our shop.

Probably true, although I'm not sure that your shop experience is entirely relevant.

If anything, it bolsters your argument that DVDs/blu-rays are a niche market.  Much like vinyl records.  Both have their enthusiasts.  But John Q. Public has given up on physical media.  It no longer has the widespread mainstream buying that it once did.  While the enthusiasts are buying, especially from boutique labels and archive releases, the public is not.  Even film enthusiasts on letterboxd are moving to streaming, to services like The Criterion Channel and such.

And don't forget that outside of the US, all streaming services are completely useless when it comes to actually representing film history. The selection of pre-80s movies is basically non-existent, and the few things available are only the very very well-known films. Good luck finding even the most well-known screwballs, westerns or noir.

People interested in anything like that outside the US only have three options: Buying physical, buying a VPN to use US streaming or pirating.

Quoting scotthm:

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It may be true that the number of people buying discs is stagnant or shrinking, but for people interested in certain genres or vintages of films on disc these are good times, and I for one am buying more discs than ever.

Oh absolutely!  We sell genre films really well, especially horror films.  I have a couple of guys who come in or call weekly looking for certain old westerns.  I really wish more people would come sell them to us, because I could turn over older films and genre films very easily.

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It's a fallacy that any film I might buy on disc will be available for streaming at my convenience and whim.

Agreed.  That's why I have a lot of physical Criterion releases, rather than just subscribing to their streaming channel.  Honestly, the streaming services I've made the most use out of are Kanopy and PBS.  The others are nice, but if I'm looking at what movies/tv shows I'm watching on services, those two hands down win.

Quoting Lithurge:

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Germany and France seem to have a more robust market for physical media so far.

I don't think so. It depends greatly on your individual focus. If you look at horror and also some specific niches like classic Hollywood westerns, yes, there's a reliable group of buyers for those over here, so there are plenty of labels just licensing stuff that is readily available via Hollywood Classics and other rights agencies, and putting it out with more or less effort, often saving money on subtitling, etc.

On the other hand, there are vastly more (and better!) offerings in terms of the usual boutique label fare (classic Hollywood, New Hollywood, renowned world cinema classics, auteur cinema, etc.) in the UK than in Germany, with labels like Criterion, Masters of Cinema, Arrow, Indicator, Artificial Eye, BFI, and Network. Most of what they release is completely unavailable in Germany, and if it is, it's often inferior, at least in terms of bonus materials and subtitling, sometimes also in terms of audio/video quality, and often enough in terms of packaging and pricing (plenty of labels only releasing oversized and overpriced mediabooks to the FOMO collector crowd )

Quoting Lithurge:

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I would say I'm talking about mid budget modern releases.

Which is of course precisely the kind of stuff people are very reluctant to spend money on. Can I have an enjoyable evening watching run-of-the-mill modern hollywood piece that is not outstanding in any department: sure. Will I likely want to rewatch it? No. Could I watch anything available on a streaming service instead? Yep, probably.

Purchasing stuff makes a lot more sense for obscure/unavailable stuff, specific genre works, and of course outstanding films that you definitely see yourself rewatching.

We've definitely branched out into Funko Pops as well, but none of our dvd/bluray sections shrank.  Our CD shelves did, and our video game sections consolidated.  I wish we'd get more video games, that's solidly our best selling department, but they sell so well that we can't keep that many shelves filled.

You're completely misinterpreting what I said. The movies you mentioned, 5.x, 6.x rated horror fare with b-actors is precisely the run of the mill fare I was talking about. There's little incentive to purchase and own such things. There's dozens of new releases on streaming services each year you can watch instead. There's absolutely no reason to pay extra to see this specific movie.

I never said that I prefer non-hollywood movies or that they sell better. What I said is that people are more willing to purchase physical copies of stuff that is either "special" or hard to find otherwise. That can be the newest blockbuster with outstanding CGI or a rarely seen screwball comedy. Either is not replaceable by any random movie available on a streaming site. The movies you base your observations on ARE. And that's why they're a dying market, contrary to the stuff put out by boutique labels.

Quoting hydr0x:

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What I said is that people are more willing to purchase physical copies of stuff that is either "special" or hard to find otherwise. That can be the newest blockbuster with outstanding CGI or a rarely seen screwball comedy.

Agreed.  The boutique label stuff sells very well for us when we get it (which isn't often), as do older films (like classic Hollywood) and the new big blockbusters.  But when people call up and ask if we buy dvds, and I say 'some,' and then they're like, what are you looking for, the easiest way to answer is 'if it was ever in a $5 bin at Wal-Mart, I don't want it.'  Because all of that's on streaming, and the physical media buyers already own it.

Now, don't get me wrong, I like streaming as a concept, but I don't personally see it as a replacement for physical media, for me it's something that's in addition to physical media.  It's an expense that could be cut if necessary for the budget, and by the nature of my job I've built a large enough collection that if I had to do that, I wouldn't suffer.