RICHFIELD, Minn. — It's the end of a movie-watching era.
Minnesota-based Best Buy confirmed Monday that the electronics retailer will phase out DVD sales, both in-store and online, early next year.
“To state the obvious, the way we watch movies and TV shows is much different today than it was decades ago," a spokesperson for Best Buy told KARE 11 Monday. "Making this change gives us more space and opportunity to bring customers new and innovative tech for them to explore, discover and enjoy."
The changeup was first reported on Thursday by The Digital Bits, before Variety cited sources Friday that said Best Buy made the decision to end DVD sales nine months ago.
Movies will continue to be sold in stores and online through the holiday season before sales end in early 2024.
The company added that video game sales won't be impacted by the change.
Best Buy, which is headquartered just south of Minneapolis in Richfield, has more than 1,000 stores across the U.S. and Canada.
The company earned $274 million, or $1.25 per share, during the second quarter of 2023. That topped Wall Street expectations, according to the Associated Press, but was still below the $306 million the company earned in the same period last year.
Second-quarter sales fell 7.2% to $9.58 billion, slightly better than analyst estimates. Comparable sales — sales from physical stores open at least a year, and digital channels — fell 6.3%, dragged down by declines in computing and appliances. While appliance and electronic sales fell, the entertainment category increased by 9.1%
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