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Not really true. Those 'digital copies' are usually heavily DRM'd and even only available to play through a specified service (typically a streaming service). It's the same arrangement, where you're actually being offered "access" to a digital copy, but you don't own it (as you would a physical copy).
I know that ripping a DVD or BlueRay for personal use is officially fair-use under DMCA precedent, but I don't know that is the case for digitally distributed media, since each provider has Terms of Service that limit the legal uses. I don't know that it's been tested in court, but it's certainly not obvious if doing so is legal (and thus not a reasonable option) to most consumers, and so it's still not a true replacement.
Again, the legality of the practice isn't really in question here, it's that there is no reasonable informed choice -- if you're going by the letter of the ToS, there is literally no legal alternative to the digital 'lease' arrangement.
*Edit - I might also point out that the only thing keeping open the possibility of ripping dvd's and blue rays into digital files is the continued use and standard of BlueRay players. Other DRM types used on media files are much, MUCH harder to bypass (nearly impossible in some cases). There are some BlueRays that come with a physical DVD containing digital media files (.wav or similar) that must be played on a PC, and those are both heavily protected AND at a far lower resolution. As soon as it's no longer common to use blue ray or dvd players, distributors will absolutely lock it down even further. We are at a really precarious place as consumers, because the market has failed so badly at regulating itself (it's a meme at this point) that we're only like 5 years away from there being no legitimate alternative to digital media streaming, even to the dedicated and tech-proficient consumers.
Do you have a source for that? My understanding was any breaking of Encryption was prohibited.
I'm still looking, but found this one that I think is the origin of the idea
Several hours later....
Spending a substantial part of my day reading the Library of Congress Copyright office's "Exemption to Prohibition on Circumvention of Copyright Protection Systems for Access Control Technologies", I can confirm that I was wrong about the legality of circumventing copyright protections on DVD's and BlueRay discs for the purposes of space-shifting (to store and view media in a different format or location). Here's the relevant section of the decision:
Not that you asked, but my personal opinion on the matter is this should be considered an exemption. That the petition was denied because the petitioning party didn't show up to the hearing is quite frustrating, but doesn't change the fair-use nature of space-shifting media for personal viewing. If it were me, I would have pointed out that there are no digital alternatives to space-shifting legally obtained UHD 4K BlueRay discs, especially for offline viewing and for viewing at the same high quality.
Frankly, I think DMCA is a load of bullshit and should absolutely be abolished in entirety, but if nothing else, there needs to be a strong petitioner actually attending the meetings to allow for broader fair-use exceptions to be heard. On the bright side, i learned a lot about exceptions to DRM circumvention i didn't already know about, namely that it's legal to alter software on phones, tablets, pcs, and even cars and land-vehicles for purposes not otherwise prohibited, including smart home devices and CARS. Fuck yea. Imma break all kinds of shit on my google homes.
Wow I wasn’t expecting that much effort, good work. We share the same let’s call it moral view that ruling Blu-ray’s should be ok for personal use, I just know it’s not a legal argument.