Home media

Home video is pre-recorded video media that is either sold, rented or streamed for home entertainment. The term originates from the VHS/Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotape, but has carried over into optical disc formats like DVD and Blu-ray and, since the 2000s, into methods of digital distribution such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Video.

The home video business distributes films, telemovies and television series in the form of videos in various formats to the public. These are either bought or rented and then watched privately from the comfort of consumers' homes. Most theatrically released films are now released on digital media, both optical (DVD or Blu-ray) and download-based, replacing the largely obsolete VHS (Video Home System) medium. The VCD format remains popular in Asia, although DVDs are gradually gaining popularity.

Prior to the arrival of home video as a popular medium, most feature films were essentially inaccessible to the public after their original theatrical runs were over. Some very popular films were given occasional theatrical re-releases in urban revival houses and the screening rooms of a handful of archives and museums, and beginning in the 1950s, most could be expected to turn up on television eventually. During this era, it was also the norm that television programs could only be viewed at the time of broadcast. Viewers were accustomed to the fact that there was no normal way to record TV shows at home and watch them whenever desired.

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