You bought all the ingredients and made your favorite sandwich… but what if your refrigerator refused to let you eat it? Sure, this is preposterous, but you might be surprised at how relevant this scenario is when purchasing digital movies, music, books, or video games!
Clicking that “Buy” button can be a little misleading. We’ve all checked that box without reading the lengthy legalese below it. Unlike physical media, most times you don’t retain anything tangible from a digital purchase. Your purchased item might display as a movie title in an online list or the name of a song in a playlist, but that “purchase” is a licensing agreement, the details of which are buried in a lengthy user agreement.
When you buy a DVD, CD or game off the shelf in a store, you get a physical copy of the movie, album, or game. The only limitation is the necessary device that will play it. Physical media has been declining in favor of digital purchases which have been marketed as a convenience. Less clutter at home. Fewer things to manage and organize. However, buying digital media is quite different from those once familiar in-store purchases.
It’s quite likely that the company you purchased that movie from doesn’t own it either. They’re often a distributor with a license to “resell” various digital titles. However, what you consider a purchase is simply an agreement between you and that distributor. If they lose their license or choose to discontinue it, the title you “purchased” can be revoked and removed from your online library.
So, you spent $19.99 buying a digital movie that appears on a list when you turn on your TV. That’s very different from taking a DVD off the shelf and playing it in your living room. The DVD is yours to keep, but you may one day turn on the TV and not see all the titles you know you “purchased.” Through no action on your part, your favorite movie, song, book, or game is simply gone.
As companies try to maximize every possible dollar, changes in licensing can occur. Titles you thought you owned are missing from your online listing. The concept of ownership has shifted into a gray area when the item in question is digital. When you purchase entertainment online, be wary of the agreement and your rights regarding your purchase. I’m not surprised at the number of people advocating for physical media in a world where buying isn’t always buying.
There are drawbacks to any purchase, online or otherwise, but its much more frustrating when something you paid for suddenly is missing from your online account. Having been a collector long before the advent of digital purchasing, it was easy for me to continue buying DVDs, CDs, and other media as digital sales became more prevalent.
My collection takes up a lot of space, but I’m never concerned when streaming companies remove movies from their service. Finding a movie, book, album, or game on a shelf is much easier for me than arguing with a customer service representative about that movie you paid for but is no longer listed on your account. Digital media can be convenient, but physical media is always on your shelf.
When you make digital purchases, keep track of your account and research the license under which you made your purchase. Be careful out there and, yes, the still make DVDs and CDs – lol.
By CapeCod.com Staff
