VHS tapes are fetching eye-popping prices at auctions

Thanks to nostalgia and an appetite for new investment opportunities, VHS tapes have been fetching eye-popping prices at auctions in recent months.

While the videocassette of "Back to the Future" went for $75,000 at a sale by Heritage Auctions in June the copies of "The Goonies" and "Jaws" were sold for $50,000 and $32,500 respectively.

The new trendfocuses on blockbuster titles of the early 80s such as "Star Wars" which aredeemed valuable by collectors.

With a premium put on first editions and sealed copies, the George Lucas sci-fi cult classic is widely considered a must-have and several copies have already been sold for over $10,000.

"MASH", "Patton" and "The Sound of Music", which were the first slate ever released on the US market in 1977, are currently considered the holy trinity.

Although 20th Century Fox was trobled when it released them, now they are worth "a six-digit number, maybe seven," according to Jay Carlson, VHS consignment director at Heritage Auctions.

Experts are baffled that the trend is picking up 16 years after the last release of a film in this format.

Drawing a parallel between the current VHS trend and video games, Pat Contri, host of the Completly Unnecessary Podcast, told news agency AFP that both markets are flooded with ''people who just decided to get into it.''

From sneakers to skateboards, several of these cultural staples have become collectible asset classes over the last decade.

While auction houses are willing to add VHS to their sales, grading services are assessing their authenticity and condition and a whole industry is getting together.

(With inputs from agencies)

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