Goodbye to more DVDs? Best Buy plans to phase out sales of physical movies in the coming months

Black Friday Shoppers walk into Best Buy after doors opened at 5am in Dartmouth, Mass., on Friday, Nov. 26, 2021.

NEW YORK — Best Buy is saying goodbye to movie-watching with physical discs.

The consumer electronics retailer plans to phase out its DVD and Blu-ray sales by early 2024 -- with physical movies set to be sold in-stores and online as they are today through the holidays, Best Buy confirmed to The Associated Press Friday. Video games will not be impacted.

"To state the obvious, the way we watch movies and TV shows is much different today than it was decades ago," the company said in an emailed statement. "Making this change gives us more space and opportunity to bring customers new and innovative tech for them to explore, discover and enjoy."

Best Buy isn't the only company to start moving away from physical media in recent months. Last month, Netflix's DVD-by-mail service, for example, officially came to a close as the company's iconic red-and-white envelopes made their final trip.

Speculation about the fate of Best Buy's physical movies began swirling around this week after several media outlets reported on the company's plans.

Entertainment blog The Digital Bits was the first to share the news Thursday, citing sources familiar with the matter. And according to Variety, which also cited industry sources, Best Buy made the initial decision to end DVD sales nine months ago.

Minnesota-based Best Buy earned US$274 million, or US$1.25 per share, during the second quarter of 2023. That topped Wall Street expectations, but was still below the US$306 million the company earned in the same period last year.

Second-quarter sales fell 7.2 per cent to US$9.58 billion, slightly better than analyst estimates. Comparable sales -- sales from physical stores open at least a year, and digital channels -- fell 6.3 per cent, dragged down by declines in computing and appliances. While appliance and electronic sales fell, the entertainment category increased by 9.1 per cent.