Sentai Filmworks Is Phasing Out Sales Of DVDs
Starting in 2019, Sentai Filmworks will begin the process of phasing out the production of DVD releases, instead, moving towards a Blu-Ray only home release option for upcoming anime.
As part of the announcement, Sentai Filmworks is giving away free Blu-Ray players to anyone who buys $300 worth of products from their stores through the end of September. Alternatively, you can order this Blu-Ray player from Best Buy for a shade under $60 and save yourself $240.
The choice on that is yours, but this move to remove DVDs is not shocking, to say the least. Home releases for anime are very expensive. The distributors for anime know this and that’s why first-run English-dubbed anime on both streaming services and networks like Adult Swim are on the rise. As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Sentai Filmworks starts doing the Funimation model, and by 2019, perhaps they are streaming English dubbed anime on HiDive in full before they hit home release.
Note, Sentai announced caveats to the DVD phase-out, including for second or third seasons of titles already released with a DVD option. Additionally, DVDs will still be released for older titles of which no Blu-ray materials exist. Future premium box sets will be designed to house Blu-ray only formats.
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