Posted in: 4K/Blu-Ray, Movies | Tagged: blu-ray, dvd, physical media, target

Target Will Only Cary Select Movies On Physical Media Going Forward

Target stores will be carrying less physical media in stores going forward, but anyone who has been in one lately could have told you that.

Published Fri, 19 Apr 2024 13:47:07 -0500

by Jeremy Konrad

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Article Summary

Target to curate in-store physical media, focusing on select DVDs and holidays.
Physical DVD and Blu-ray presence already reduced in recent years at Target.
Outcry over physical media demise premature; it thrives online and in niche markets.
Target confirms continued sale of extensive DVD titles through their online platform.

Target has joined other big box stores like Best Buy, which will only carry select physical media. When questioned about the decision yesterday by IGN, a Target spokesperson had this to say: "Based on our guests' shopping patterns and broader industry trends, we're transitioning the limited assortment of DVDs we carry in our stores to Target.com, where guests will continue to find thousands of titles," the spokesperson said. "Moving forward, we'll offer select DVDs in stores when they are newly released or during key times throughout the year when they are more popular, like for gift giving during the holidays."

Physical Media Is Not Dead, It Is Just Fine Actually — Passion for cinema, a stack of movie collection in blu-ray disc format in Hollywood, USA, 30 Jan 2020. Photo By Luca Lorenzelli.

Target Sells Physical Media?

To those who freaked out last night on social media at the news and used it to hammer another nail in the physical media coffin, I ask: have you been to a Target in the last two years? I don't know about anyone else, but where I live in Ohio, I have three stores within twenty minutes of my house, and you would think they made this decision in 2022. Especially the one closest to me, they have maybe three shelves of DVDs and Blu-rays and a holiday display with select titles. Most of the time, they are stacked in carts in the back of the store and not on the shelf at all.

So, yet again, people freak out that physical media is completely dead now. It just is not true. Sure, it is not a $12 billion industry anymore. However, it is still alive and well in secondary stores, independent stores, and especially online, where, by the way, Target will still offer thousands of titles for orders. Will we be able to just walk in and browse the shelves anymore? Not like we used to, no. But stop writing the eulogy until it is necessary.

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