re: The importance of owning physical (and digital) media when possible
Original post at space • time • tech by Jake. I've been sitting on this post for weeks, but thought it was time to share now.
The fragile nature of digital media has been in the news quite a bit recently, and the physical vs. digital debate is as old as...well I'm not sure, but at least since the late 90s and Napster vs. The Music Industry. Here are two of the latest articles, both about Sony:
-- Sony erases digital content from libraries; we're reminded we don’t own what we buy - Ars Technica
-- Sony to end disc production for new games on PlayStation consoles - The Mainichi
The first article is—unfortunately—normal at this point. Video streaming services pull content all the time, and most recently in February 2025, Amazon removed your ability to download previous eBook purchases (I hope you downloaded yours to Calibre!).
The long and short of it is, as pointed out by nearly everyone else who has talked about the subject, when you shell out $35.99 for the digital version of a movie, you're purchasing a license. When you buy the 4K disc, you're buying the disc. If you're lucky you'll also get a digital code so you can watch it more conveniently (but that's rarer these days).
The second article is simply disappointing, because not only does this mean you can't own games anymore, but there are cascading impacts: it breaks the model of used video game stores (at least for modern games), and libraries that loan video games won't be able to loan any games that come out after 2028.
So yeah, I'm firmly in the pro-physical camp (I'm almost 100% certain I've written about it before).
But there's another aspect to this that is important to me, now especially as I'm about to become a first-time Dad in January. You can't pass down digital copies to your kids. Sure—you can stream a digital movie with your kid sitting by your side, but there's no guarantee that it will be available when you want to watch it. Or you'll need to figure out what service it's on. This isn't Star Trek, where seemingly every piece of media in existence is available on your LCARS terminal.
Maybe my kid won't be interested in a 52-year-old movie when they're 101, but I know I'll have it on disc and they can decide for themselves.
Am I an old man yelling at clouds right now? Maybe. But also the younger generation is starting to embrace analog tech too2, so I can't be completely crazy.
Related reading & listening
- Keeping Physical Gaming Alive - One thing I didn't think about was that most physical copies are a means to download a game. I might have a disc for Star Wars Outlaws but I still have to download the game. Would I be unable to play it if Sony removed it from their servers?
- It's not about physical vs digital games, it's about ownership – Popcar's Blog - Similar to the above link. The way discs work now, do we still "own" a game?
- Still thinking about Sony ceasing physical discs - What's up with James?
- Re: It’s not about physical vs digital games, it’s about ownership - Kali Kambo - Ownership from the perspective of zines. It also mentions the idea of building a community with physical objects. "Physical media acts as a path to making connections. " This particular quote about physical media is interesting:
In a way, this encourages taking care of zines, because you may not be able to replace one that was damaged or lost. Physical media allows us to care for it. Digital media is intangible. There’s nothing for us to care for.
- 231 - British and Hot | Ruminate Podcast - among snack talk, there's a discussion of physical games in here
- Re: Revival of Independent Physical Video Rental Shops – amanda untangled - it's so easy now to build a physical movie library with used dvd and Blu-ray discs
- Sony faces an anti-trust complaint in Mexico over ending PlayStation physical media | Eurogamer.net — via Joel