The rise of the information sector has left its effect on everything from music to television to movies since the invention of digital versatile disc (DVD) technology.

From how entertainment is created and sold to how it produces income, every area of the media industry has seen its business shift in ways that were unimaginable a few decades ago. As firms are compelled to adapt the way they look at the creative process and seek new methods to support their projects, the business consequences of the digital format have had a lot of intriguing effects on the creative sides of modern media.

The impact of VHS cassettes on the film business begins in the early 1980s with the introduction of VHS tapes. Home video revolutionized the film industry's economic model, providing films a second life and a second chance to make money, all from the comfort of people's own homes.

VHS cassettes were first prohibitively expensive, as the business was accustomed to selling reels of film to cinemas that could be shown hundreds of times for profit.

The comparatively short-lived laserdisc was the first digital product to follow in the footsteps of VHS. As a result, they were prohibitively costly, as distributors were used to selling VHS cassettes to movie rental businesses, which could be rented out hundreds of times for pennies on the dollar.

Of course, the sheer quantity of recording capacity available on the DVD was one of its most appealing features. A VHS-quality digital recording of a normal film might only have 400 megabytes of storage space, whereas the most basic DVD format has 15 times that.

DVDs have included menus and other interactive material since the beginning, but creators were compelled to develop new methods to utilize that space. It improves the package's appeal and gives customers a wider range of ways to experience the film.

Even if a film is never released to a regular cinema, the production of DVD-only extras has become an important component of the industry and the filmmaking process for every film.

Interviews with the director, cast, and crew, as well as storyboards and special effects demonstrations, may all be found on today's DVDs.  Many DVDs also include voiceover tracks with commentary from behind-the-scenes creators and actors.

While fresh and revised releases of previous films have always been a way for the industry and filmmakers to generate new revenue and display improved versions of their films, it is only in the DVD era that many versions and re-releases of films are conceivable on a big scale. The original "Star Wars" trilogy, for example, was released in theaters in the mid-'90s thanks to advancements in special-effects technology.

Trends in the industry, such as the length of various types of films, alter throughout time. While romances and comedies are typically 90 to 120 minutes long, historical dramas and epics can easily exceed two hours. 

While sequels have always existed, particularly since the dawn of the blockbuster era in the 1970s, the DVD has given the franchise a whole new dimension. A film might get a sequel if it was extremely successful at the box office before home video, but with fresh releases every week, a picture may not play in cinemas long enough to justify a sequel.

With the introduction of VHS and video rentals, studios began to regard those revenues as part of the larger franchise, and more films were given sequel treatment. However, because each film, even a sequel, has its own budgetary and marketing problems and is treated as a separate project, the number of sequels, prequels, and spinoffs did not really take off until the introduction of the DVD production.

The coming of the DVD-Home Video era allowed more people to have access to films and series that were before then difficult to come by. The impact of this was that it made it possible for such films and series that would have hitherto been regarded as obscure to gather a lot of fan base resulting in a cult following.

The home video trend brought the pleasure of film and series to viewers in the comfort of their homes and even offices changing the face of the film industry in ways that were before its introduction impossible to anticipate. Although there were initial resistances from those – film and video distributors - who felt that it threatened the old way of film marketing and consequently their profit, slowly, the market soon leveled up as the film studios realized that they wouldn't lose profits due to this new system.

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