Will there be a return of the VHS and Audio tape?
The Return Of The Tape is gaining traction. like many relics from the eighties, it has become a frenzy to “collect”
Nostalgia is a strong emotion. Eighties nostalgia is unparalleled. The decade was characterized by audio cassettes and VHS tapes. The longevity of these two media platforms is undisputed, even surviving the advent of the CD and DVD.
Over the last couple of years, we saw a huge resurgence of the LP. You can now once again buy your favorite LP and play it on newly manufactured LP players. I bet the tape will follow soon.
Move over Netflix and Prime. People are returning to the way of the VHS tape, tired of endless scrolling through terabytes of media, and finding comfort in the old tape. In recent years even thrift stores would chuck donations of audio cassettes into the trash bin. Now we witness an awakening of trade in old original audio and VHS tapes. Some fetching handsome prices from collectors on eBay.
The audiotape eventually disappeared from the shelves as more and more people went CD, but the two variants shared shelve space in music shops for years, still offering shoppers their choice of format. The VHS tape stuck around much longer, well into the 2000s. With Video rental stores having to stock both formats. The main reason why the tape lived on so long, was because of just that. It’s been around for a long time. Almost every home had a tape deck and VCR, and every car came with a tape deck/radio.
Expensive laser products
The transition to DVD and CD was at first a costly exercise. Most people did not have the means or the desire to take the giant leap in the early days of CD and DVD. And on top of that, you couldn’t tape your favorite TV show on a DVD when you are out at night or compile your own “my mix” CD. Recording on the new formats was just not possible. Although recordable DVD cameras and PC Cd writers came around, it just wasn’t the real thing and never really took off.
New Era
But as life is, time moved on and technology eventually made the tape obsolete. The cost of CD and DVD players drastically came down as more and more manufacturers entered the market, making them more affordable to more people. Record stores moved away from tapes and only stocked CDs, video rental outlets started to shed their VHS tapes and switched to DVD only. However, the retailer, up to now being able to adapt, wasn’t aware of the looming shift in media. Online streaming. Huge mega stores stocking thousands of titles of CDs and DVDs was a haven for music and movie lover. Spending hours flipping through the wide variety of CDs and DVDs, enjoying the glorious cover artworks. But eventually, these would succumb to the internet.
Piracy, downloading, and the rise of the likes of Apple Music and Youtube to just name a few, brought a new era in entertainment media. It was cheap, readily available, and storage was the nail in the coffin. No more carry cases filled with cassettes for your road trip, or shelves at home with rows and rows of VHS tapes. The same applied to CDs and DVDs. Die-hard fans and purists kept the market alive for a while, but it was only a matter of time. All but the last music and video stores disappeared from the malls and street corners. Times are changing and it waits for no one. The last VCR was produced in 2016.
Blockbuster Video Rentals
Blockbuster had the chance in 2000 to buy Netflix but decided against it. By 2004 Blockbuster had around 9000 stores worldwide. But the writing was on the wall with online video-on-demand growing rapidly. By 2010 Netflix, Hulu and Redbox all but destroyed Blockbuster’s client base, leaving the company with a whopping debt of one billion Dollars. They filed for bankruptcy and were snatched up by Dish Network. The remaining 600 stores battled on, but by 2013 there were only 300 stores open. By 2017 Blockbuster was a shadow of itself with only 12 stores remaining, Today one store remains in Oregan USA.
Die-hard fans
But something is brewing in the tape world. Recently some fans of VHS nostalgia started a tape and DVD swop venture. Old newspaper boxes were converted and decorated to resemble the old Blockbuster Video rental stores. They call it “Free Blockbuster” These boxes are placed on the street, and you can swop your old VHS or DVD for another title to take home and watch
Video rental store recreations
The Return Of The Tape and the nostalgia surrounding it has captured the imagination of some creative people. The story of Nick Collins has been covered by many writers and fans. He became famous for his recreation of a Blockbusters Video Store in his basement. It is an amazing accomplishment by any standards and the envy of fans worldwide.
Conclusion
For many (not everybody) that lived through the 80s, it was just a remarkable time of their life. Bringing Eighties relics back to life is proof of that. Many of us today are miffed by the plastic and artificial substances of modern life, and we yearn for the life we had during the 80s. Toys from back then are snatched up by collectors for top dollar, and the list of items is growing by the day. From BMX bikes to copies of MAD Magazine dated from somewhere in the eighties, to original VHS tapes. It’s an 80s Gold Rush. The sad part is once the last person of this generation has laid down his or her head, it will all be history. So fork out those Dollars on eBay, hold it in your hands, and think back to our glory days.