Last night, news broke that Best Buy would stop selling DVDs and Blu-rays in the first quarter of 2024, according to The Digital Bits. Now Best Buy has confirmed that it will stop selling DVDs and Blu-rays in 2024.
“To state the obvious, the way we watch movies and TV shows is much different today than it was decades ago,” a Best Buy spokesperson said in a statement to Variety. “Making this change gives us more space and opportunity to bring customers new and innovative tech for them to explore, discover and enjoy.”
The move is another hint at the possible end of physical media as consumers gravitate towards streaming services and their extensive libraries, or digital downloads. This comes as one of the largest distributors of DVDs and Blu-Rays, Ingram Entertainment, said it was exiting the business just as Walmart is looking to take over management of Studio Distribution Services (SDS), which handles the distribution of physical media. Disney ceased selling physical media in Australia.
Walmart sells more DVDs and Blu-ray Discs than any other retailer. Its sales make up approximately 45% of the market, according to Media Play News, totaling $2 billion in annual sales. However, more people prefer streaming and on-demand content over physical copies. Last year, Walmart cut retail space by 20% last year, roughly the same percentage overall DVD and Blu-ray Discs sales fell in 2021, according to Forbes. Amazon is reportedly the largest online seller of DVDs nd Blue-rays.
Best Buy has been phasing out DVDs from its stores, but The Digital Bits reports that Best Buy would even stop offering it on its site as well, signaling a complete break from physical media. This move will leave Walmart as one of the last major national sellers of DVDs and Blu-rays if someone wants to buy them in person.
Walmart, meanwhile, remains a massive source of physical media sales, which likely aren’t going away any time soon. And while Disney exited Australia, it just released Blu-Ray and 4K Ultra HD discs for Disney+ original Loki last month, with The Mandalorian coming in December.