We live in a society that has come to expect a certain degree of ownership and control over the things we pay money to acquire. Over the years, we have grown used to that sense of ownership applying to the software, games, and media that we purchase.
Now, however, since technology is shifting more toward streaming and cloud-based systems, we are increasingly purchasing only a license to use software for a specific period of time or for use on a single device. A recent court ruling has even upheld the right of software manufacturers to restrict a customer’s ability to resell their purchases, a decision that threatens the entire used gaming industry.
But the truth is that “renting” media does have certain advantages over having to buy a physical copy.
Online distribution and licensing of media means easier access to products and updates. There is no need to run to the store and leave your home or office when purchasing or upgrading to the latest version. And a software package with a serious security vulnerability can be patched quickly, easily, and cheaply.
It’s better for the environment too. All the packaging associated with physical media will inevitably end up in the landfill and, considering the shorter lifecycle and higher rate of usage for many software packages these days, that would be a lot of trash. Downloads and streaming eliminate the need for packaging altogether, and save storage space in our homes.
Plus, when you eliminate the packaging and the need for production and distribution, the manufacturer saves a lot of money which they are then able to pass onto the consumer. This is also something that has allowed many more small software and game development houses to compete with large corporations and stay in business.
So while we are giving up a certain element of control, there are some perks to this new way of doing things. The question now is whether we’ll ever be able to accept the reality of not having tangible media to buy, sell, trade, or give. Considering that digital game downloads outsold retail copies the first half of this year, it seems that we may already be well on our way there.
