4. Physical Newspapers
Yep. The idea of getting a paper delivered to your door is slowly fading out as the news is widely available in larger, freer sources. In the past, newspapers were more commonly purchased and used as the sole source of information around the city and around the world. Back in the day, you would simply pick up a newspaper on your way to work, read some articles during your lunch break and toss it in the bin the next morning.
It was the bee's knees.
In the modern age however, instead of getting up a cup of coffee and heading to your front door every morning, you can simply wake up, turn your smart phone on, and check Google News at no cost to you. There's no need to pay a few dollars for a monthly subscription or a few nickels for a issue every day. You can simply go to the same quality newspaper company's website and check out all the new articles free of charge. It's cheaper and more convenient, what else would you want?
The only thing it's good for is arts and crafts
In the newspaper industry's perspective, what's the point? Why spend millions of dollars printing articles when you can simply pay for a big ol' server and slap a internet subscription fee? It's a win-win for everyone. The fact is, purchasing a physical, paper newspaper is slowly becoming obsolete due to our recent innovations in technology.
3. CDs
When was the last time you've used a CD? In fact, when was the last time you've bought a piece of software or game that came boxed in packaging? Nowadays, you can simply download a nicely polished game/software on the company's website without waiting a week for a box from Russia to get to your house. Music can easily be downloaded legally from the internet via. artist's website or online marketplaces.
It's not like you download it in any other way, right?
Thanks to places such as Steam, Amazon, iTunes Store and other large online marketplaces, you can simply purchase and play software within the same hour of purchase. There's simply no need for the average consumer to go out of their way and pick up a CD at the local Best Buy to watch some summer flicks during the weekend.
If you don't watch "Bad Teacher", who will?
In the industry's perspective, it's much cheaper to simply stream music, games, and software from their servers to your computer than to have to manufacture CDs with nice boxes and cases. Not only can the savings help them profit, but can allow them to sell their products at more economic prices while remaining a healthy profit. It's a win-win.
2. Landline Telephones
Remember the olden days in which you had to run across the house to pick up the phone? What crazy silliness right? Nowadays, you can simply get a cellphone that can provide the same service with cheaper bills, cheaper maintenance and greater portability. Why be restricted with bulky phones connected to wires attached to your house when you can be checking your facebook while calling Uncle Johnny? It's like medieval technology!
Where do you insert the torture?
Recent technology has allowed us to take the same capabilities of a landline phone and shrink it to the size of a palm and throw in a hundred other features. Cellphones have allowed people to communicate from practically anywhere in the world. No longer do you need to be within 15 feet of your phone to call your friends about Sarah and her boyfriend. Today, you can bring your conversation to practically anywhere you want, the bathroom, the bedroom, the office, the office's bathroom, your friend's house, your friend's bathroom, you mom's house, your mom's bathroom, and even the bathroom!
I think I forgot to mention something.
In such a fluid, moving society, cellphones are the way to go.
4. Mail
In the past, there was a time in which you needed to physically write a letter, address a letter, and pay a small fee in order to communicate with someone. If your friend Andrea needed to know which homework he missed on the weekend so he can make it up before the semester ends, that mail isn't going to help him. If your friend Andrea was about to get kidnapped by masked assailants four blocks away, a addressed mail isn't going to get your friend away either!
"Jane, you've messed with the wrong lady. In a few moments, you will be kidnapped, gagged, and thrown into a non-specified lake, alive."
The fact is, most methods of communication has been digitalized for convenience. Why wait days to weeks to get your message across and wait another few days to get a reply? Other than sentimental reasons, writing a physical letter is both time consuming and not cost effective. E-mailing a million people will cost you a few warning emails from your email hoster about spam, sending a million pieces of addressed mail will set you back a pretty penny.
