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'The Simpsons' seasons won't be available on disc from now on

If you've been diligently building a collection of Simpsons episodes on disc, you're in for a rude surprise. Show runner Al Jean has revealed that Fox is discontinuing disc releases of the long-running cartoon. As sources confirmed to us and The Hollywood Reporter, the studio doesn't believe there's a point to hard copies at this stage -- now that you can watch The Simpsons online, it "made more sense" to focus on internet services. With the show constantly airing around the world and in heavy rotation on FXX, it's a bit more accessible than other series even though DVD and Blu-ray are still big business.

The Simpsons' long run and availability makes it a unique case, but the rise of apps and streaming services bidding for rights means other season-by-season TV boxed sets could follow. All in all, it's bad news for completionists that value having an offline copy and so far there's no good replacement for that. Now that Fox is trying it out, our only question is which series will leave the shelf for the cloud next?