This was during an era where VHS was standard and DVD’s were just brand new at the time (before streaming sites existed). Chains like Blockbuster were booming back then with people renting movies or even TV shows for a fee but have to return them by an expected date, what happens is that in order to “keep” a copy, people would use a PC with disc burning software to burn the contents from that DVD onto a blank one.

Know those blank white DVDs? Basically those were used on storing a “pirated” disc for themselves before returning the rented copy back at the video rental store. When I was a kid, I remember encountering what clearly a pirated copy of The Prince of Egypt (so who ever pirated it kept the rented copy) since the disc art is crappy & low quality (it’s been printed then glued onto a blank DVD used for copying upon peeling it off).

  • infinitevalence@discuss.online
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    4
    ·
    11 hours ago

    I can’t speak for others but for myself basically zero.

    Because the rental cost of non new releases was so low it hardly made sense for movies I would only watch once or twice a year. In addition due to the frequent replaying on cable of many movies that would further reduce my need to pirate.

    Piracy for me has almost always been a service or availability problem.