This means you can't pass the game around to your friends or sell it afterwards, which completely ruins the purpose of physical media imo. I mostly play PC these days so this doesn't affect me, but it's a disappointing direction for console games. At least they could've used an empty disc that has proof of ownership.
EDIT: Bethesda has confirmed that only the PC version won't include a disc. Physical versions of Xbox will include a disc. Whew.
Physical media is dying a slow and painful death.
Depends on the medium really.
The Criterion Collection is still kicking so its selected works are still getting highly curated physical releases. Vinyl records are growing in popularity for those enthusiasts.
It's video games that have the biggest issue, and it's saddening because they are the most in need of preservation due to patching, updates, licenses, DRM, etc.
Wish the big three would come together for some type of preservation goal at the very least.