Steams online infrastructure has evolved completely since its arrival back in 2003. Games are generally well preserved on their servers and anything removed from store is still downloadable from archives and your library. Given the choice, if at the the same price or cheaper, digital is a lot more convenient for most PC gamers and easier to deal with than discs especially when you can amass a great deal of games, for not so much money. Especially when sales are on.
There are other alternatives to Steam like GOG who's games are DRM free and are able to be backed up to your digression. Granted when I started gaming on PC I started on CD-ROM, moving onto DVD I think Steam actually brought a lot to the table for PC gamers. It was literally an open market with no ecosystem before.
Consoles on the other hand are another matter entirely. With the looming price hikes and sustainability of AAA games, its hard to see how the landscape will change for the better for us consumers should all consoie manufacturers move to all digital future .
