Gadgets

The Last Major VHS Retailer Abandons the Format

While we know that media formats will come and go (be they physical or purely digital), the death of VHS is one of particular weight. Players have died, now tapes have, too.


While major retailers have long since ditched VHS for the space-friendly DVD alternative, Distribution Video Audio was the last major supplier of VHS, supporting part of their $US20 million a year business by selling mass amounts of VHS tapes on the cheap. With little fanfare last October, the company shipped their last truckload of VHS. From the company’s president:

It’s dead, this is it, this is the last Christmas, without a doubt. I was the last one buying VHS and the last one selling it, and I’m done. Anything left in warehouse we’ll just give away or throw away.

Rather than rewrite the whole story, I’ll just point you to the LA Times and assure you that it’s a great, be it sad, read. The format that popularised replaying, archiving and sharing media is but the stuff of collections. Luckily, it’s been replaced by some pretty incredible alternatives. [LA Times and image]

Comments (AU Comments | US Comments)

  • Raphael Stevens

    Doo yu hav lcd tev? Doovde. One doovde player and a joovce likide tev.

  • Doug Gordon

    VHs is as dead as vinyl and the recent record day proved that wasn’t as dead as the MEDIA would have us all believe. We still sell thousands of VHS, we get REAL cheap. Some SMART company will make a deal to put new movies on VHS, just imagine how many copies of “The Bucket List” would have sold on VHS….

Post Your Comments

Got something to say? There are two ways to comment:

1. Guests

Click here to comment instantly.

2. Facebook Users

Click below to comment using your Facebook account.

We're looking for comments that are interesting, substantial or highly amusing. If your comments are excessively self-promotional, obnoxious, or even worse, boring, you will be banned from commenting. All comments are moderated.