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I have a DVD from Vivid, which has worked fine for me in the past. In fact, I reviewed it for this site. Recently, it stopped working, and I've tried it in several DVD players, both standalone and PC based. I suspect it has DVD rot. When I contacted Vivid about a replacement for the defective disc, I received a one line email response: "when did you get it".
I gave them the answer, and received back another one line response: "you used it for over four years, we don't replace discs after one year".
Was my request to have a replacement unreasonable? I offered to send them the defective disc. Certainly makes me pause and consider whether to continue to purchase DVDs from this studio in the future. I'd be curious to see what you all think, am I being unreasonable, or is Vivid missing an opportunity to forge a strong customer bond?
Unfortunately, all DVDs are disintegrating at various rates depending upon the pressing process, the glue used, and the environmental conditions the discs are kept in. They are not permanent storage. CDs have the same problem, but they last longer because of the technology. Double sided DVDs are especially at risk.
As a company with over 100,000 of these plastic discs, we feel for your plight. However, the problem is with the DVD technology rather than the manufacturing. There are exceptions to this but they usually surface in the first year. This is something still being worked on by libraries and other archivists.
Even the magnetic tapes on which mainstream movies are kept deteriorate fairly quickly. Hollywood studios are starting to rotate their masters every 2-3 years to protect their movies. I'm not sure what the adult studios are doing with their masters or if they are even thinking about it.
I guess the good news is that a 4-year-old title is likely inexpensive to repurchase as long as it is still in circulation.
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Posted - Apr 24 2007 : 1:06PM
Wow, draken - welcome back!
I think after four years have passed it's too long to ask for a replacement of any inexpensive product. Though had I been in Vivid's shoes I would have replaced it simply to get you on the mailing list ;)
I had one Wicked's Jenna Jameson become unplayable after a couple of years.
Regarding Peeping Tom 19, Bill, you were lucky your DVD played fine. My copy never played. I got a second copy and it did not play either. Great, great series indeed as the Pickup Lines.
Has anyone determined if the quality of a dvd deteriorates over time if it's kept in its case & not played versus being played on a say monthly basis? Of course, the more you use something, the more likely it's going to break, etc.
I ask because I have always thought about when purchasing a new dvd to make a backup copy of it, then using the copy instead of the original. Naturally placing the original back in the case & in a proper climate.
As I understand it, the reading of data is done by light. Nothing touches the disk. Therefore no friction, and no wear from playing.
Other things may come into play though. Perhaps the case protects it from exposure to air pollution that deteriorates the disk. Dunno. But, you have to take it out of the case sometime. :)
I suppose this would spread out the probability of you winding up with zero disks that play. The idea being that they both wouldn't fail at the same time.
Ah but that is another problem. Recordable DVD media breaks down at very different rates depending on the manufacturer of the disc, the write speed, and the quality of the recorder. DVDs seldom become completely unplayable unless they de-laminate or become physically deformed in some way (e.g. from postal sorting machines). Mostly, they start to degrade in spots (usually evidenced by pixelation). It is less likely that the same exact spots will go bad but then you'd have to somehow piece them together.
I've read that degradation is severely slowed by keeping discs in the freezer, but I have no evidence that backs up that claim. If true, maybe somebody will start a disc storage facility somewhere cold for all those important family movies.
By the way, VHS tapes have a similar problem except nobody really noticed because the quality was poor to start with and people just assumed it was from wear and tear.
Thanks Steph, it certainly has been a while since I was a reviewer for the site. Not that I haven't wanted to come back/visit, just life in general (not to mention a 2 year old daughter), using up the hours in the day.
I appreciate the reality check everyone. Sad to see a DVD go, this is my first one to become unplayable. Hopefully my other ones last much longer before going tits up.
