Farewell to the videocassette

Twenty-seven years ago, my family bought a JVC VHS VCR. It cost an eye-popping amount, and blank tapes were reused constantly because they cost $20 each.

About five years ago, at the Anime Expo convention, a dealer was hawking anime VHS cassettes, which had been released for about $30 each MSRP, for a couple of bucks a pop. "The death of the medium is your friend!" he called out.

Now, JVC has stopped making VCRs; and will stop selling them when its supply runs out. Commercial programming isn't released on videocassette. This LA Times article discusses the gradual demise of VHS. It's following the eight-track tape, the home reel-to-reel player, and the audiocassette into entertainment oblivion. (At least the LP has a die-hard strata of audiophiles to keep it alive.)

An interviewee in the article predicts that Blu-Ray will supplant DVDs in a few years. I doubt it. But then, I'm the guy with boxes of VHS cassettes and a shelf full of laserdiscs.