Civil Discussion: Will Physical Media die?

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larryinc64:
I was adding to your point, Wiggy, regarding internet.

I don't see it ever dying, at least for systems. With Steam, PC gamers seem to buy online more than physical. But only because they are so cheep.
Most people use the internet on their systems for online play and Netflix and whatnot.

wiggy:
Gotcha ;)

JDavis:
Also, as someone who lives in Oklahoma, I can confirm there's still plenty of people in this country who are either still stuck on dial-up or who don't even have internet and/or a computer.

sheep2001:
It's all about the infrastructure, and unless the games/music/movie companies start investing in the infrastructure required to reliably stream, serve, and provide cloud storage to upwards of 90% of the population in the modern world (not just urban areas/big cities), it won't happen.

On top of that, there needs to be a huge rethink from the service providers about removing download caps.

And lastly - there's the piracy. You take away the physical media from the millions of people out there who want a tangible product, and what do you give them in exchange for paying for a download vs a dodgy download. A gold star and a guaranteed place in heaven isn't going to cut it for most people.

I do think some companies are going to go for it sooner than others (i'm placing a bet on Sony Entertainment, they are already cutting down on what you get in a box with tangible media for alot of games...ie:no physical instruction manual), but i feel certain it will come back and bite them in the ass. The others will sit back and see what happens, and hopefully learn from those mistakes.

Forte:
Physical Media will always exist in our lifetimes; seeing as how old folks still cling to landline phones and records and dialup internet and other such things that are long since obsolete, companies still have to cater to them. As such, when we become old folks and demand physical media for our games, music, etc, they'll have to pander to us too.

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