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Technology

Circuit City Phases Out VHS 565

Posted by timothy from the we-join-this-plummet-already-in-progress dept.
Rashan writes: "Video Business Online is reporting that Circuit City is becoming the first of the mass merchants to state its intent to discontinue sales of the aging video format."
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Circuit City Phases Out VHS More

Circuit City Phases Out VHS

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  • Wow, like this hasn't happened before... (Score:3, Offtopic)

    by FortKnox ( 169099 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:17PM (#3716632) Homepage Journal
    Ever tried to by a tape of your favorite new album?
  • Just as we have seen record stores phasing out tapes over the last few years, we know start to see the same with VHS. And it's about time. VHS tapes degrage horribly over time.

  • Ahhhh (Score:4, Funny)

    by Pyrosz ( 469177 ) <amurrayNO@SPAMstage11.ca> on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:18PM (#3716639) Homepage
    But I can still buy Beta, right?

  • Who shops at circuit city? (Score:2, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Their sales people work on commission (at least they seem to) and are always pestering me when I shop there. Generally, I'm quite informed about what I'm looking for, and don't really want them buzzing around me trying to point me at things I'm not interested in.

    About 5 years ago, I was looking for a new cordless phone to take back to college with me. 900mhz was the thing to buy (spread spectrum baby!), and the salesman was like "Wow, that's a powerful phone, you don't need that." and I was like "Yes, yes I do. I live in a dorm with many people with many cordless phones and I need one with more than a handful of non-encrypted channels." and then we had a big fight. So anyway, I didn't buy the phone there. I went to Best Buy, and this "too powerful" phone is the one I still use, and it still kicks ass (now in an apartment building.)
    • Not only do they earn commission, they earn their commission based on the profit of an item. That "too powerful" phone you were trying to purchase was probably a loss leader and had a very poor profit margin. He was likely trying to steer you a phone with a better profit margin and of course a better commission for him. Commission is still commission, but don't be fooled into thinking that the more expensive item will yield a better commission for the salesperson.
    • "About 5 years ago, I was looking for a new cordless phone to take back to college with me. 900mhz was the thing to buy (spread spectrum baby!), and the salesman was like "Wow, that's a powerful phone, you don't need that." and I was like "Yes, yes I do. I live in a dorm with many people with many cordless phones and I need one with more than a handful of non-encrypted channels." and then we had a big fight. So anyway, I didn't buy the phone there. I went to Best Buy, and this "too powerful" phone is the one I still use, and it still kicks ass (now in an apartment building.)"

      That sounds quite similar to what happened to me at Radio Shack last year when shopping for a cell phone. The guy tried to steer me away from certain phones because the service plans for them were 'too expensive.' (These were the pay as you go plans where, although the per minute rate is high, they are still cheapest for low-useage folks like me. I have one such phone right now and I pay CDN$10/month for useage.)

  • good news for linux? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by tps12 ( 105590 )
    One of the (many!) drawbacks of VHS is that it is analog; there is no reasonable way of watching a VHS tape on one's computer. With DVDs, of course, all it takes is a cheap drive and a halfway decent video card, and you're set.

    It just so happens that one of the many things at which Linux excels is in viewing DVDs (I have seen articles claim 25% better framerates vs. Windows). Not to mention that many of the set-top boxes that people are starting to hook up to their TVs run Linux rather than Windows.

    The increased popularity of DVDs over VHS is bound to improve Linux mindshare and marketshare.
    • >The increased popularity of DVDs over VHS is bound to improve Linux mindshare and marketshare.

      Yes, and Spiderman is an allegory for our post-911 globalism. Quit trying to Katz-connect everything. Who the hell watches movies on computers [theonion.com]?

    • Linux DVDs (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Never successfully gotten any Linux DVD player to work. I have, however, watched many DVDs using Windows XP. If it's that hard to set up in Linux, framerate statistics are worthless.

    • Re:good news for linux? (Score:3, Insightful)

      by treat ( 84622 )

      It just so happens that one of the many things at which Linux excels is in viewing DVDs


      Except that 1) you are committing a crime by posessing a DVD player for Linux, 2) The DVD players for Linux have terrible user interfaces, 3) The DVD players for Linux are unreliable at best, 4) The DVD players for Linux are some of the only software that can cause the entire X server to crash.

    • It just so happens that one of the many things at which Linux excels is in viewing DVDs (I have seen articles claim 25% better framerates vs. Windows).

      Quit yer trolling...if you're getting 29.97 fps, you're getting as much out of a DVD as you can.

    • No reasonable way? (Score:3, Informative)

      by ColGraff ( 454761 )
      So I guess video capture cards, like the ATI TV Wonder series, are all useless. Silly me.

      Seriously, spend $50 on a tv wonder VE, connect your VCR to that, you're in business. Perfectly reasonable.
  • is one of the first legitimate signs that DVD is here to stay. Obviously circut city beleives that they are now outdated. I just wish that more obscure and/or old films and shows would come out on dvd. I need the good ole' VCR to watch my stupidly huge collection of "V" episodes...

  • Camcorders, security cameras? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by GigsVT ( 208848 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:21PM (#3716670) Journal
    I assume there will still be a niche market for security cameras and camcorder type cameras.

    On the plus side, if anyone is looking for a good security camera program that is open source, I recommend "Motion". I was going to use a VHS based security setup, but went with it instead, with VHS as a backup un case the computer crashes.

  • hmmm... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Dr. Awktagon ( 233360 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:21PM (#3716671) Homepage

    Anyone else remember the far-sighted and insightful (ha) judge in the DeCSS case that said hey, you don't need to make excerpts from DVDs, because the analog format is available?

    Not that I'm crying about the loss of VHS tapes, that's for sure. As soon as PVRs have built-in DVD writers, clunky tapes that operate by scraping against a metal disk will be a distant memory.

    • Not that I'm crying about the loss of VHS tapes, that's for sure. As soon as PVRs have built-in DVD writers, clunky tapes that operate by scraping against a metal disk will be a distant memory.

      Exactly, tapes died down when CDRs become in general use; as soon as DVDRs become another general consumer product, with taping and transfers available from different media, VHS will die down; until then VHS (converted from 8mm, digital, etc) will still be used for home movies, and things like that.
    • Ahh, looks like the MPAA has found a novel new way to plug the "analog hole"-- just get rid of the analog devices! What a relief. Now I can rest assured that the industry will be making the money they deserve, selling those copy-proof DVDs.

      All your VCR are belong to us!
  • Maybe they're going to replace the VHS section with their DIVX DVD's they tried forcing on us when DVD first came out :)

  • Keep in mind (Score:5, Informative)

    by joeflies ( 529536 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:22PM (#3716676)
    that this article is about phasing out pre-recorded VHS tapes. It doesn't say that it will phase out VCRs.

  • Forcing the market change (Score:5, Interesting)

    by M_Talon ( 135587 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:22PM (#3716680) Homepage
    This is just the next step in the evolution of the format. Now that it's gained customer acceptance, the stores can get rid of the inferior technology (VHS) and concentrate their business. It happened with audio cassettes (vinyl was killed), and it happened with CDs (bye bye cassettes).

    As far as being a premature move, everyone that I talk to nowadays either has a DVD player or plans on getting one within the year. Sounds like the perfect opportunity for the stores to push those last few stragglers to DVD by eliminating the VHS market for new releases.

    Besides, wouldn't you rather have more room on the shelves for the latest anime imports? ;)

    • Exactly. Circuit city sells DVD players, it is in their best interest to coerce people into purchasing a DVD player. One of the easiest ways to do this is to make it more difficult to get the movies people want to see on VHS. If Circuit City can convince millions of people tha their VHS player is obsolete then they make out like bandits.

    • Re:Forcing the market change (Score:5, Informative)

      by radish ( 98371 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:39PM (#3716856) Homepage
      It happened with audio cassettes (vinyl was killed)

      Really? That's strange. I could have sworn that last time I was in the Virgin Megastore in central London they dedicated at least 10% of their total floorspace (including CD/DVD/games etc) to vinyl. I must have been imagining it.

      Note to the unwise - vinyl sales are on the up, they have been for 5 years. At least 50% of the major single releases each week are available on vinyl. 100% of dance oriented ones are. The vast majority of dance music (the biggest selling sector in europe) is ONLY available on vinyl.

      And turntables regularly out-do guitars in the annual christmas gift surveys :-)

      • Re:Forcing the market change (Score:5, Funny)

        by IxnayOnTheIxnay ( 579226 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:52PM (#3716964)
        Note to the unwise - vinyl sales are on the up, they have been for 5 years. At least 50% of the major single releases each week are available on vinyl. 100% of dance oriented ones are. The vast majority of dance music (the biggest selling sector in europe) is ONLY available on vinyl.

        "Did you know that disco record sales were up 400% for the year ending 1976? If these trends continue... AAY!"

        And turntables regularly out-do guitars in the annual christmas gift surveys

        I don't care, I'm still going to replace my record collection with my own guitar playing.

      • Re:Forcing the market change (Score:4, Informative)

        by Ralph Wiggam ( 22354 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @03:04PM (#3717037) Homepage
        Yes, dance music and vinyl are always entwined because of how dance music is DJed. Yes, dance music is much more popular in Europe than here in the states. Yes, vinyl sales are up over the last 5 years.

        Now the bad part:
        Vinyl sales are down 90% from 1989 and probably much more from 1979, but I can't find good numbers pre-1989.

        If you were to walk in to any major chain store in the US and ask where they kept the LPs, they would look at you like you were from another planet.

        -B
        • If you walk in to any major chain store and ask where they kept all the music that didn't suck they'd probably look at you the same way.

        • A friend of mine recently went into a record store and asked where the vinyl was. The guy looked at him and said "What's a vinyl?".

          I can just imagine it was the epitome of the pimply-faced kid from Simpsons.

          "I'll have to check with my manager on that..."
    • As far as being a premature move, everyone that I talk to nowadays either has a DVD player or plans on getting one within the year

      I have delayed in purchasing a DVD player due to the price. But this latest development should help decrease the price even more! Woohoo.

    • Until there is something available that I can record anything on broadcast TV for a handful of pennies. I doubt I am alone among the mass market.

      What, exactly, constitutes "everyone you talk to nowadays"? The other folks in your cube farm? Doesn't sound like a representative sample to me. (Not a flame, just an observation).

    • I won't convert to DVD until it is completely safe of DMCA/UBDTCADFDSASBXCASFAF/copyright-gestapo restrictions. We fall so easily for the same old trick. Now we have to repurchase all our old content because VHS is being phased out (just like we had to pay x2 to upgrade to CD)? No thanks, I'd rather *legally* digitize my copy-unrestricted VHS tapes and burn them onto <media format of the day> (if it is DVDR I'll already be unduly taxed for "piracy"). In fact, the first thing I'm going to do after I purchase the new VHS movie I want today, is to download *legally* a DivXed copy (save myself the trouble of digitization). Just watch 10 years from now it will be flourescent video disc technology and we will be on the same upgrade treadmill throwing away mountains of DVDs and repurchasing our property all over again.

      • Re:Forcing the market change (Score:4, Interesting)

        by foobar104 ( 206452 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @03:58PM (#3717480) Journal
        This is interesting. There's a new type of Ludditism. Instead of rejecting technology prima facie, you're rejecting technologies based on what you call "copyright gestapo restrictions."

        For a contrary opinion to that popularly expressed by Slashdotters, head over to the avsforum.com [avsforum.com] HDTV recorders posting board. There you'll find lots of people enthusiastically supporting copy protection methods like JVC's D-Theater format. Why? Because they know that without those sorts of protections-- or restrictions, if you prefer-- the studios will never release their movies in 1080i format on any medium. A movie recorded in high-bit-rate 1080i is very close, when viewed on consumer gear with a slightly forgiving eye, to an HD master. Studios simply won't release near-master-quality tapes or discs unless they're confident that those movies won't be copied like crazy.

        I like owning and watching high-quality movies; that's why I've invested in a high-definition TV, a DVD player, and a collection of DVDs. I'm not interested in making copies of my movies, so the fact that I'm (a) not allowed to, and (b) prevented from doing so doesn't bother me in the least.

        So I vocally support copy protection-- or restriction, or prevention, or whatever you want to call it. Without it, I won't be able to watch movies in high definition, and that'd be disappointing. Every time somebody pirates a video, CD, or DVD, they make it ever so slightly less likely that I'll be able to get the kind of entertainment I want in the future.
    • My neighboor (who is 26 or so) bought the Harry Potter DVD because it came with some medallion or something like that. This then forced her to buy a DVD player so she could watch it.

      So...if Circuit City just includes some toy from a serial box or whatever, they could make a killing in DVD and player sells :)
    • For less afluent people, CDs/CD players are too expensive. Which, of course, puts DVD players way out of their range. But I guess it's OK for poor people to not be able to afford entertainment, right?

      I don't have a DVD player yet, and don't have plans to get one. I rent movies once in a while, I tape shows to watch at my convenience a *lot*. And don't give me that "You should just get a Tivo" bullshit. Not everyone spends their every last penny on geek toys. Some of us have families to support.

  • Stock up now! (Score:2, Insightful)

    by InfinityWpi ( 175421 )
    Stock up on non-Macrovision VCRs and blank tapes now, people. Pretty soon, the only way you'll be able to record things is on digial video recorders that don't let skip commercials and keep track of what's on them...

    What applies to sysadmins will also apply to the video recorder: External storage is the only way -you- have sole control over your data.

  • Good, but they'll still need a benefit. (Score:3, Insightful)

    by wackybrit ( 321117 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:23PM (#3716690) Homepage Journal
    Phasing out old formats is rarely a bad idea (tapes, Betamax, etc.) but I don't think this is something they can just leap into.

    Many people go shopping together, or with family/kids etc. In many households, it's likely that perhaps the main entertainment center will be DVD, whereas the kids might have a VHS player in their den/playroom. This might make some families steer clear of Circuit City for movie purchases, as parents don't mind buying el cheapo VHS tapes for the kids, but also want to buy DVDs for themselves.

    The same applies to groups of teenagers out shopping. Some will have DVD players, some won't, so why go to Circuit City?

    I think Circuit City is making a brave move, but they need to have some incentive to shop there. Perhaps they could sell ultra-budget DVD players, to convert more folks over, or have very low DVD prices, so that people will go there no matter what.

    However, and this is a rule of retail, offering less choice and sticking to the same prices will always mean some of your customers will go elsewhere.
    • "this is a rule of retail, offering less choice and sticking to the same prices will always mean some of your customers will go elsewhere."

      Still, by dropping VHS tape sales, they've suddenly opened up quite a bit of shelf space. If they fill that with more DVDs, they'll have a wider choice of a premium format, even if they've eliminated the choice of a cheaper format. So it's still a bold move, it's not as far out there.

      Besides, I always got the impression that actual media in Circuit City was an afterthought. It felt like they were more focused on selling the hardware.

  • Its not entirely clear from the article if Circuit City intends to stop selling VHS recorders as well as titles. It seems like they are only talking about the titles, but it would bve strange if they sold VHS recorders but not tapes.

    Anyone know for sure?

  • PHasing out VHS (Score:5, Funny)

    by Space Coyote ( 413320 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:23PM (#3716694) Homepage
    But, as mentioned by the headline on Fark [fark.com], they still sell turntables. Go figure.

  • What about later media revival? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by da3dAlus ( 20553 ) <dustin.grauNO@SPAMgmail.com> on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:24PM (#3716698) Homepage Journal
    Ok, granted cassettes and VHS tapes won't really go away for a while, what happens once all the players are gone? What do you do with all those home movies on VHS or the 8mm tapes that you put in the VHS converter? For example, my aunt has a bunch of the old reel-to-reel movies of our family, and she asked me recently where can she get them converted to something more modern. I told her I honestly don't know, and I didn't even know where to get a working movie player to begin with.

    Actually, I think it's that episode of Cowboy Bebop that reminded me of this issue. The one where Jet and Spike went on a hunt for a Beta player (or was it a VHS player)...
    • I bet if you asked around nicely, you'd be able to find and use an old reel to reel at a nearby university. They have storage rooms full of the most ANCIENT bric a brac that you ever done seen. They never seem to throw away old audio visual stuff.

  • Already gone in some Circuit City stores (Score:4, Funny)

    by tshoppa ( 513863 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:24PM (#3716703)
    VHS tapes are completely absent from the Wheaton MD Circuit City store. Only DVD media available there.

    I think they still had VCR's in the store, though.

  • It's very telling that Circuit City is the first to push VHS out the window. They're the same ones that tried to push the DivX discs on us. They became one with the Dark Side a long time ago.

    Once VHS is gone for all pratical purposes - the Dark Side can start making better use of the features of the DVD player that consumers will hate the most, such as forcing you to watch a half hour of ads before you play your own disc every time you watch it, and other such nonsense. They've avoided doing this to most titles so far for fear of pushing customers back to VHS, which they can't control as well.

  • VHS is a dinosaur! (Score:2, Insightful)

    by uncoveror ( 570620 )
    Lousy picture quality, and they will wear out. Good riddence to VHS, your grandpa's way to collect movies. I guess they are an appropriate format for the Jurassic Park flicks, though.

  • Oh well, has to happen at some point... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by st0rmshad0w ( 412661 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:31PM (#3716781)
    I don't see what the big deal is. Tho what I do find interesting is walking into a local music store named "Record & Tape Traders" and finding no records or tapes. Blah.

    Yes VHS is on its way out. The worst problem with this is the eventual loss of films that will never be released on DVD.

    • Yes VHS is on its way out. The worst problem with this is the eventual loss of films that will never be released on DVD.

      You hit that one dead-on. I have a number of old videotapes that i love kicking around that will never make it. There isn't exactly a huge market in 80's teen chick flicks in the DVD genre *grins*.

      I love the dvd releases for Harry Potter, Star Trek TNG, and just about any anime for the choices and menus (cant wait to grab Neon Genesis on DVD), but most of my old favourites just weren't popular enough or are too 'passé' to be released on DVD now. While geek favourites are almost guaranteed to make the transition, movies like "Heathers" and "The Breakfast Club" probably never will.

      Showing my 80's girl upbringing bigtime here.
      • go to a place like Suncoast, or heck even Best Buy, and take a look through their DVD sections. You'd be amazed at what they are releasing out on DVD. I'm in the process of buying tons of bad 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's horror flicks. Like Corpse Grinders, 7 Doors of Death, Zombie, and other cools stuff. Heathers [amazon.com] and the Breakfast Club [amazon.com] are already out on DVD, those are actually pretty popular cult films. You'd actually be surprised what makes it onto DVD.

  • DivX anyone? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by drawlins ( 586049 )
    I agree that VHS is out, but I would not be one to follow Circuit City in a technology trend after their all-out effort to embrace DivX. I pity anyone stuck with one. :-(
  • Go to IMdB to check out the formats for latest releases. The usual drill is that VHS tapes are released to rent, but DVDs are available to own. That alone may be impetus to get the DVD version, but add in clarity, physical space, bonus scenes and features, and a good comparative price, andpeople will choose DVD over VHS if given the opportunity.

    VHS is making its way to the 8-track and reel-to-reel dustbin of obsolesence.

  • And they're replacing it with what? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Aexia ( 517457 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:38PM (#3716853)
    Sure, VHS will have to go eventually. and I won't exactly mourn the crap quality. But what's coming down the line?

    What's the standard affordable alternative to replace the easy recording ability of VHS?

    Before anyone says it, Tivo(and other services like it) ain't it. I can't share it with anyone else over my always-down DSL connection. No one can just hand me a disk of the Angel episode I missed last week or something.

    I'm trying to think of a technology that could replace it... maybe a box that could burn VCDs on the fly? The technology's probably at the point that you could do that affordably.

    The advantage of this is that people are already used to burning CDs, it's a widely available media, and you probably wouldn't need industry support to make the player. That means you wouldn't need to include DRM or other crap.
    • "No one can just hand me a disk of the Angel episode I missed last week or something."


      Correcty me if I'm wrong but isn't that the purpose of Tivo devices? You're supposed to record the show on the Tivo device and watch it at your leisure.

      Personally I would like to be able to have the service be unattached to the cable company and choose which DVR I want to use. Cable companies woudl provide their schedules in XML or some other similar foramt and let the DVRs decode the data on their own within the constraints of their own UI.
    • No one can just hand me a disk of the Angel episode I missed last week or something.

      If you had a TiVo, you wouldn't have missed it. (Unless you're like me, and you hate that show).

      Besides, the owners of the the content don't want you doing that.
  • If there are is really a lot of demand for titles on VHS, people will just go to another store. Conversely, if ther ewere a lot more demand, CC wouldn't be discontinuing the format.

  • Yup, real soon we won't be able to tape shows off the TV.

    Yes, one could get a Tivo or the like to do one's "time-shifting", but the MPAA and other associations are already attacking the systems, and the ability to share recordings with friends is limited and may get cut off altogether.

    This is a good sign that the concept of intellectual property is reaching dangerous new highs, and should be reined in.

    • Re:No replacement! (Score:2, Informative)

      by mrmag00 ( 200868 )
      woah there, they aren't getting rid of them first off and second they are getting rid of movie releases. you can still buy a vcr and record tv shows, and you still will be able to 10 years from now. (just like I can still use a casette player to record audio, but buy new music in CD form. Also can buy it on tape, but it'll be harder to find.)

      just because they are favoring a newer, higher quality, digital format over aging VHS in MOVIE RELEASES doesn't mean the worlds over.
  • Yea, remember all the money they poured into the divx (not the compression, they expiring dvd's) format? I hardly consider them an industry barometer. In their effort to be ahead of the curve, they can make some bad decisions.

    --T
  • Back when I bought my first VCR, Circuit City was the low-cost vendor for the things; you could buy on for $300-400 from CC, or go to an electronics boutique and spend $1,000 or more.

    That's changed, obviously. Walmart sells them for under $100. That's probably what has driven CC out of the business. As long as you can buy a VCR at one of these discounters, or even a grocery store or pharmacy, it just doesn't make any difference. Now when they start carrying DVD, or dropping VCRs, watch out!

  • What about recordable media? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by ari{Dal} ( 68669 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @02:53PM (#3716968)
    While I use and love my DVD player all the time (ST:TNG DVD collection is getting quite a workout), I still love my old VCR. Why? It was a convenient, all in one package. I could buy used VHS tapes for under $10 each at the local blockbuster, or pop in a blank cassette to record whatever program I wanted. No need for two seperate disc racks, and one less box to fiddle with in the entertainment centre.

    Agreed, the quality isn't there. The picture and sound are completely inferior to DVD, and any new movies I buy will most likely be in DVD format. But until they can give me an affordable, recordable dvd player, VHS is a viable option for those who don't want to spend that much money on movies.

    Add to that the number of videotapes i've purchased and recorded over the years, and the cost of replacing them all with DVDs, and I'll probably hang on to the old VCR for quite some time.

    Having said all that, I am definately looking forward to a time when true HDTV, DVD-Rs, and PVRs are commonplace, and I can say goodbye to analog and poor signal quality forever. Of course, they still haven't figured out how to keep the sat dish from fizzling during thunder/snowstorms.
  • Every entertainment medium is going digital, some (broadcast TV, broadcast radio, movies at the theater) more slowly than others (music, cable/satellite TV, Internet radio, movies for home use). Eventually, there will be a box available which has a radio tuner and a digital cable (or satellite) TV tuner, PVR functionality, music recording to the same internal hard drive as the movies, and a CD-R/DVD-R drive for dumping out content in a portable fashion. Heck, with the iMac, you are 75% of the way there on hardware (need the tuners) and the software wouldn't be difficult to put together.

    Anyway, my point was that with entertainment going digital, all of the analog formats will be relegated to the back shelves, if they continue to exist at all. I suspect that this will be a falling-off-the-shelf phenomenon, like how vinyl disappeared in the US in a year or two after a critical mass of the public had a CD player; rather than a gradual slipping away of the format.

    About the only thing that can hold this change back is legislation or excessive lawsuits. Seems that ??AA were ahead of the curve on the reasoning, since they are focusing on both lawsuits and legislation in their attempt to gain and maintain control of the audience.
  • Half the article was "Is this a good decision? We don't know..." said in a couple different ways. Regardless of what you think of DVD's and Circuit City in general, here is my take:

    Circuit City is a progressive business, who pushes the status quoe (sp?). This is evident by their experiment with DivX, and getting rid of appliances, as stated they did in the article. Circuit City is after a certain type of market. By now, most people who buy electronics on a regular basis own a DVD player. I figure Circuit City makes their highest profit per visit off of customers who already own DVD players. If they don't own a DVD play, and stop shopping at CC due to this change, it was not one of their high value customers to begin with.

    DVD's are "moving" much faster than VHS these days. Not only are people buying new releases, but also replacing their old VHS tapes. This means it is to CC's best advantage to fit the broadest DVD collection possible into the store. People will go to CC since they are likley to have the DVDs they want. If a non-DVD player owner is on the brink of getting a DVD player, this may be the kick in the pants they need (cha-ching on new players!)...if it isn't, the customer will probably be on the low end of their "value" scale anyway.

    My guess is Circuit City want to be the one stop shop for the progressive electronics buyer, who isn't interested in VHS, or appliances anyway. If that is the case, which I could be wrong about, CC knows what they are doing and this is probably a good business decision.

    -Pete
  • Don't get me wrong, I have a DVD player and rent them almost exclusivly, but I don't think VHS is dead just yet. I use my 2 VCRs very often to record TV shows so I can watch them at my leisure. You can do it with Tivo, but then I can't lend the tape out, or watch the show elsewhere. Plus a VCR is more economical for me since I have 1000 blank tapes sitting around.

    CC is just cutting the VCRs because they are cheap and they don't make a lot of money off them, Walmart and Best Buy will have them for 10 more years.
  • It seems like the decision of a major retailer that there is no wide consumer demand for a video recording medium will only help the industry forces who want to restrict this "right"

  • Hmmm (Score:2, Funny)

    by Wrexen ( 151642 )
    I think this is a good sign that it's time to throw out my 8-track player
  • Its scary to think that VHS might be phased out before a cheap/easy alternative way to record tv shows is available. You can't record the Sopranos for your no-cable tv cheapskate parents without VHS. I assume that eventually TV DVD players will also record but even that will probably be a write-once format, so it will mean no more using the same tape to record Friends every week. You'll need a new disc every time. Anyway I think that is why they will be selling VCRs for along time. Plus, everybody's wedding is on VHS.

  • Don't panic (Score:3, Funny)

    by Stavr0 ( 35032 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @03:09PM (#3717072) Homepage Journal
    They are phasing out sales of pre-recorded VHS Movies. They are not discontinuing sales of VHS decks or blank media (yet).

    Instead of VHS, CC will be carrying DIVX Movies exclusively. ;-P

    Story Moderation: -1 Inaccurate Title

  • Really, this should come as no surprise. As previous posts pointed out, this has to do with *videos*, not the players themselves (yet).

    The Blockbusters in my town (Madison, WI) are all going DVD, reorging their displays to relegate VHS to one corner (or in some stores, do some interleaving). And they've been doing this for the past 6-8 months.

    And having grown up in Boston, everybody knows the midwest is slower to pick up on national trends. :) So if VHS is disappearing here, you know it's already gone on the coasts....

    Though I doubt VCR sales will ever die until somebody comes out with a good (i.e. Joe Sixpack) way of TiVo'ing out to CDR.

    - Matt

  • That's odd... (Score:4, Funny)

    by SuperguyA1 ( 90398 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @03:19PM (#3717140) Homepage
    Given the circuit city in my neighborhood the article could read. 'Neighborhood phases out circuit city'.

  • RIAA (Score:2)

    by javilon ( 99157 )
    It looks like VHS is indeed dead. That means that DVD will go huge in the next couple of years, and this also means that the RIAA won't stand a chance to introduce a new video format with working copyright protection.

    And the number of broadband users keeps growing ...

    Oh well!

  • Uses (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Kallahar ( 227430 ) <kallahar@quickwired.com> on Monday June 17, 2002 @03:48PM (#3717402) Homepage
    What do you use your VCR for? I use mine to time-shift TV shows. I cannot do that with a DVD player. Phasing out pre-recorded VHS tapes I can understand, DVD is far better in that case, but the VCR will have plenty of market behind it as long as it is the only affordable way to record shows.

    Travis

  • Article title misleading.... (Score:3, Informative)

    by nedron ( 5294 ) on Monday June 17, 2002 @04:22PM (#3717656) Homepage
    The title for this article is patently misleading, as CC is phasing out the sale of pre-recorded video tapes, not the VHS format in general. They will continue to carry blank media and decks.

    It makes sense to phase out the pre-recorded VHS items since the primary pre-recorded rental/sale market is obviously tilting to DVD.

    It would make no sense to phase out VHS hardware or blank tapes since those are still (and will be for the foreseeable future) the primary means of recording material in the consumer space.

    In fact, CC has started carrying blank D-VHS tape. I don't know that they carry the decks yet, but there's always Best Buy for that.

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