Vertical Helical Scan isn’t an attempt at an awkward sex position; it’s the full name of the dying 30 year-old cassette format for watching movies, VHS.
VHS, which casually stands for “Video Home System,” was invented in 1976 by Victor Company of Japan, Limited, or JVC. As most everyone knows, the cassettes are played in an analog video cassette recorder, or VCR. The format won widespread use over Sony’s Betamax during the famous console war in the early 1980s, and finally became the industry standard in 1990.
Concerning the downfall of VHS from the popularity of DVD and new recording mediums, Variety Magazine quoted Buena Vista Home Entertainment general manager Lori MacPherson saying, “It’s pretty much over.”
Although DVDs were introduced to the
VCRs remain somewhat popular (though declining) for their inexpensive cost and television recording ability. DVD-recorders haven’t completely replaced them due to infamously temperamental recoding processes, and the fact that single layer DVDs offer a much shorter recording time than four-hour VHS tapes. However, with Tivo, other Digital Video Recorders (DVR), Video-On-Demand services, illegal downloading, networks offering episodes on-line, and the quick turnaround of DVD television box-sets, VCRs are quickly loosing their footing in the home recording market.
30 years really is a pretty long time for one format to be the entertainment standard of the world. DVDs took six years to catch on, and now, only three years later, have already met the introduction of two competing High-Definition formats. Is the life-expectancy of home entertainment media getting shorter?
The war between High Definition (HD) and Blu-ray (BD) only seems to be getting more heated and complicated since their official announcements earlier this year. Both offer unique advantages, but for the most part maintain similar technology in increased storage capacity; 15GB for HD, and 25GB for Blu-ray– exponentially larger than a standard DVD.
Most research firms, including the market researchers at Forrester, predict a Blu-ray dominance after about two years of consumer uncertainty, in part fueled by Sony’s new Playstation 3. However, the industry giant Microsoft has signed up for the HD camp, so heavy marketing tactics and the highly- anticipated X-box HD attachment could pull more customers. However, both formats are shooting themselves in the foot by making customers wary of buying either; no-one wants to get stuck with failed, or short-lived, technology.
Whichever format ends up dominating the market after the advertising and marketing push is over, we shouldn’t expect either to last very long. The rate of consumer technology is increasing so quickly that physical media may be soon outdated. Apple’s iTunes Music Store now offers feature film downloads for $9.99 and single episodes of popular television shows for $1.99.
This year’s expected death of VHS may mark the death of format longevity; the increased turn around for new technology and startling impatience for the consumer dollar only hurries the industry giants’ efforts to get the customer what they want to see.
Pretty soon, it will be time to stash your VHS tapes with your vinyl records and cassette tapes, just be sure to leave enough room for the next few years of DVDs and High Definition formats.
