Why streaming services mean we don't own anything any more - even our favourite films and albums
As well as increased accessibility, should we be talking about how streaming services represent the death of ownership?
It seems like life once depended on how much you ventured outside. To the shops, to the park, to your local cinema, or to your local record store. But the internet has changed all of this progressively.
We now shop online, we now spend more time on our phones, and we now listen to music and watch films from the comfort of out own homes. I recently wrote a piece about how London's last DVD rental store has closed its doors for good.
It seems like a symbolic opportunity to talk about streaming services and what they represent. Among the accessibility they brought to many, they also represent the death of ownership and a changing experience entirely.
Let's say your favourite artist is releasing a new album tomorrow. Are you heading to a shop to pick this up and talking with other fans about their excitement? Or are you staying up into the early hours of the morning for a first listen on Spotify?
The lack of ownership here means artists can change albums without warning too. We saw this, for example, a few years ago with Kanye West's The Life of Pablo (please bring back the original version of 'Wolves'!)
Films are slightly less impacted by all this but they still definitely are. DVD and Blu-Ray sales continue to decline to the point where major retailers in the US like Best Buy are no longer selling them.
Yes, the pandemic has played a part here, but streaming services were growing long before Covid-19 arrived. Just think about it for a moment. How many of your favourite albums and films from the last five years do you own a physical copy of?
Here's to hoping CDs and DVDs may follow the trend of vinyl and its nostalgic revival.