Flexplay: The Disposable DVD that Failed (Thankfully)

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Have you ever run across a cool idea that you desperately hope doesn’t catch on? Flexplay is one of those. In this video, we’ll talk about what it is, why it was crazy to think it would go anywhere, and why it’s probably a good thing it didn’t.

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[AntiVectorTV]

They were so proud of the concept that they made the company self-destruct as well.

[JerryShugars]

I remember buying a couple of these just to see if it was possible to rip them to the computer before the disc oxidized. It was.

[TirantRex]

The flexplay patent basically made it impossible for other companies to try the same thing, so at least we can thank them for that.

[OverseerMoti]

Talking about self-destructive media storage, Hideo Kojima (that Metal Gear daddy) once thought of using this kind of CD when developing Metal Gear Solid. He said if Snake died, the PlayStation disc would be permanently unusable. Good thing this tech never took off.

[jonjohnson]

Thankfully, they patented every conceivable way to make a aelf destructing disc, so nobody else can create such an abomination

[coltyn]

Me: "Mom, can we watch Charlotte's Web?"
Mom: "Sorry honey, it expired last week."

[anti_honey]

If they made a VHS version, would it be called Flextape?

[ShannonRice-hckr]

I remember my dad talking about these. They were very popular with long-haul truck drivers. You could get these things at the major truck stops, watch the movie in the off time, then toss it. Most truckers had a portable TV/DVD, but not a ton of space to store movies. And since many places, especially in the Midwest, didnt have Redbox yet, it could be hard to return a rented disk on time.
Another perk was a trucker could buy these disks on the company account while buying other work supplies at the truck stops or even pay with cash. If a driver wanted to use Redbox, they woud have to use their own personal credit card.
So, I guess the Flexplay system did "work", but only for a relatively small market. Of course, when truckers started using Wi-Fi or smart phones, there was no need to use disks at all.

[hgbugalou]

The jokes on them. I store my DVD player in an airtight box filled with nitrogen.

[TimpBizkit]

Watching Mission Impossible. "This DVD will self destruct in 10 seconds"

[tyfalcon]

Hearing "11 years ago" in reference to 2008 made my head hurt.

[sirradiodude]

I actually still have one I purchased from Staples, The Kite Runner. IT STILL WORKS! The disc has air gaps in the center that allows oxygen to slowly degrade the disc, BUT if you quickly apply superglue after opening to seal that gap.... no degradation! At the time this wasn't a mystery and info and methods were readily available online via forums. I only bought the disc for the challenge of making it permanent. I was an early Netflix and Blockbuster by Mail so even paying $5-6 to permanently own the disc wasn't that appealing because the selection was poor and I still had to drive TO the store to buy it.

[truthsmiles]

Another problem: The consumer is much more likely to rent another movie if they have to return the first one, continuing the rental cycle.
I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the “environmentalist pressure” was applied by the rental companies themselves.

[quiteenough]

I'm a risky man. I'd watch Mission Impossible on those, two hours before expiration.

[krudmuphinstudioz]

One of the earliest "nightmares" I had as a kid involved me reading books that destroyed themselves after 1 reading, and video games that self-destructed after you beat them. This kind of shaped me into the non-wasteful person I am now. Learning just now that something dystopian like this actually existed, makes me sick to my stomach.

[mazda]

Tested one of these back in the day by leaving it constantly running in a DVD player. After about a day and a half the image began to get scambled and it was unplayable within an hour

[BinBintheRiceCake]

Man, companies always finding ways to make you not own anything.

[grandmoffpuppeteer]

Truck Driver here: these were cool, but kinda on the expensive side if I recall. They were great for us, as getting back into a place to return a DVD could never be guaranteed. Hence, the truck stops you mentioned them being in: captive audience. Except that audiobooks were cheaper, and in only a year or two, smart phones were available so these were much less useful.

[NoOne-fegc]

"You will own nothing and be happy"
This DVD concept was ahead of its time

[punishedwhispers]

There is something so horribly depressing about this, I can just picture a little kid buying Chrarrolets Web and not understanding why their favorite movie just stopped