Is The CD "On The Way OUT"??
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Artist:
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So what do you think? One major retailer, that helped kill off the Mom and Pop and smaller music stores chains, says it doesn't see a strong future for stocking many physical CDs anymore- except for perhaps the mighty popular releases by the biggest names. Those are still worth stocking, to draw traffic into the stores. But on the whole, CD sales are declining and digital sales are climbing.
The plan would be to remove the big CD section and replace it with less physical stock and surround the 'Hot" CDs with MP3 players, accessories for those players, internet connectivity devices of various sorts and prepaid download cards from Apple, Microsoft Zune, Napster (which they own) and others.
(Enjoy some funky jazz while you read)
Basically, they'd still be supporting the major releases, but steering people's eyes to the future (present???) of purchasing via digital music sources. I imagine that if they go through with it, other major retail stores will follow suit. Before you know it, there could be a more sooner than later, gradual phasing out of the CD, as we have seen with the so many other antiquated forms of entertainment.
If they implement this strategy and it is successful over time, you know the other major CD retailers will not be far behind. Now, most likely the majority of MOGgers don't do their CD shopping at Walmart or Target or Best Buy, but I would venture to say, most of the general U.S. public does.
As the available artist selection shrinks, what will these consumers do? And if the volume of stocked CDs shrink, what will that cause the record companies to do?
What will become of CD liner notes and artwork? Will the CD booklets and liner notes become .pdf documents that you print and assemble yourself? I could foresee the day when, whatever would have come in the CD case, now comes via an unlock code on the artist's or record company's site, when you purchase a full album download from any participating retailer or web site.
What does your crystal ball say the future holds for CDs? And how long do you think the CD will still sell in brick and mortar stores? Got an opinion?
Comments (59)
Oh yes I definantly see the cd going the way of the 8 track and the cassette tape at least as far as artist sales. (new cd's) I think the cd like the cassette tape will linger for a few more years in the mixtape variety. At least untill a majority of cars have mp3 player jacks. and the dj culture having figured out how to "scratch" cd's will keep a subculture of them alive. but have no fear sir, Vynal records are making a resurgence in popularity as are reel to reel tape players. In fact I think there will always be an underground collection of conesuers and afficinado's that will always want to play music on it's original media format. I for one won't miss skipping, scratched, fragile cd's at all and as for album art is it really that important? because if you wanna be a true collector I got a box of empty cd cases liner notes included that I'll be happy to sell you. In answer to your obvious question I keep the cd's on old cd-r spindles. Collect now kids cause one day soon these things will be sought after by a collectors market. It's the dawn of the digital age and I have a feeling alot of us are gonna take losing physical media hard.
Yeah, it seem as if it's not if, but when. It will happen, it's just a matter of how long they will linger before the end of mainstream sales. Unless the record company's stop manufacturing in total, I think they'll be out there available in limited quantities somewhere- perhaps just at the artist's sites though.
Yes CDs are definitely on their way out, but it will probably take quite some time before it happens. I think much of the transition may depend upon the availability of high definition mp3s and higher speed network connection at the typical home. Some residential areas across the U.S. are just starting to see Fiber to the Home/Curb, etc. In Japan and other countries with newly developed infrastructures, the higher speed networks to the home are already in place. As for the availability of high def mp3, the number of web sites now making offerings is growing quickly. For the consumers that are only concerned with playback via automobiles and/or typical personal computer playback, the demise of CDs will come quickly indeed. You don't need to buy a new car to plug your mp3 player into your car's audio; those cassette adaptors are still usable by many.
I actually welcome that virtual audio world that will have less clutter of physical things. I will demand the higher quality data though.
You notice how they are now putting USB slots in the newest auto MP3/CD players? You won't even need to plug in an MP3 player- just a 8 or 16 GB thumb drive, to have plenty of music to enjoy. They may even start putting hard drives in the players, so you can transfer songs from the thumb drive and remove it to fill it again!
Whenever I read stuff like this my mind wanders to various sci fi movies like Star trek, or Minority Report, and a zillion others, where we see books and music accessed at the snap of a finger or voice command. Some tiny hand held device or wall size monitor, or sound coming from somewhere. We see it all developing around us now and marvel at the foresight of the authors and producers.
I wonder what 12th century man would think were he to get a chance to visit us here. And then I take myself to the future and know that I would react the same the as 12th centiry man would react here.
Best Buy's strategy is just preparing for the inevitable. And as the rate of technology change continues to double every few months, I have no reason to doubt that the CD will go the way of the DODO bird, the Betamax, or the Edsel.
You know cap, I sometimes wonder if it's because of the ideas in those futuristic movies that inventors and manufacturing companies decided to attempt them. Had those visionaries not planted those ideas in the first place, there's probably a lot of great inventions we would not have these days. It's kind of freaky.
Just in time for the Xmas season.
Yeah, baby. I could use a car stereo upgrade!
There was a major difference when vinyl, 8 tracks and cassettes started disappearing from the shelves and CD's appeared: people bought CD's.
on one hand, I welcome the convenience and portability of the digital age. there's an unbelievable amount of media that can be slipped inoccuously into a shoe-pocket
but the other hand is the saddness at the abscence of all those special places to discover music in an environment geared to it. Vinyl, 8-track, cassette or CD; the big boys have always been there...way back when it was Gold Circle and Ayr-way, Woolworths for the great discount bins. But, the special places were those little kiosks and head shops where the fringe people gathered and shared their stories of what was hot. I miss that
As I am wont to do, I will look back. I agree with most folks above..the CD is on the way out. I look at the big boxes offering less space for CD's along the lines of MTV no longer playing videos..just another example of the incredible short sightedness of the record biz.
When the big box retailers came along with their promises of big numbers on big hits, the music biz was falling all over itself to get in bed with the box retailers, while screwing all the indie stores that used to break their artists.The boxes used the cache of music to sell what had a much better margin, TV's and refrigerators, and (in the case of Wal Mart) Ritz Crackers.
I remember music biz folks complaining that used CD's drove down the perceived value of discs, then going out of their way (after the weak collusion efforts of the 90's) to get their CD's on sale for under 10 bucks at Wal Mart.
This doesn't mean the CD could have been saved, it's more that the biz could've ratcheted down on its own timetable by not selling out to the big boxes and focusing on indie retailers and the hard core music buying fans who dwelled there and actually embracing the internets.
In the end the music companies got played by the big boxes, just as MTV played the majors to make a name for itself, so it could stand alone without the videos.
I do think that the "big box" stores will ditch the CD sooner rather than later. I also foresee something that has already been happening for some time: music stores becoming more like boutiques who cater to the die-hard music enthusiast, with CD and vinyl availble for those with discerning tastes.
So, just like the death of the vinyl record player has been vastly overrated, I foresee the sme thing for all physical media.
And frankly, if the big labels have been looking to Wal-mart and such as their saviors, then they deserve exactly what they get.
Thank you for wrapping up my rant in that last sentence. Not a big fan of CD's anyway.
* nod *
So Best Buy is going digital download? YAWN. I don't buy music CDs from BB, preferring Borders or Indie stores like Jelly's in Waimalu. (I notice that neither Sam's Club nor Costco has tossed music CDs, so what's the bgi deal?) Out here in the World category, there are numerous artists who still "do music CDs" since FaceSpace and MyBook are too crowded for them to make enough of an impression. So, TweetyBird all you like about "The Death of Music CDs," I'm still buying from everywhere BUT Best Buy.
Here's something for "The Nerd Herd" at "Buy More":
You live in Hawaii..but you post with Brooklyn attitude.
So you are off the hook for the death of the cd A48. Because of your indie and Borders buying practices, no blame is coming your way. Thank you for all your efforts in the Save the CD campaign.
Cool cd quality sound cover of War in the player.liked that.
Rex..love the blaxploitation reading vibe..
I'll say one thing, I'm NOT a fan of seeing the lyrics and liner notes disapate. It seems as if a small majority of digital music comes w/ lyrics and any more than the front cover art. If the industry can find a way to preserve that aspect (art and lyrics), then digital isn't going to be all that bad. Right now, mp3s/digital albums minus all the other "stuff" are devaluing the "total package" music experience, in my opinion.
Great post. Nice discussion.
Aiea, Boarders may linger longer, but if the BIG 3 start the withdrawal, Boarders won't be far behind. The indie shops may last a bit longer, but they will have to change their business model to survive. That's my prediction. Thanks for the comment music!
Eric, and I imagine they are taking as much of a cut of the digital track sales as they ever would- without having to fork over the additional CD case and innards.
(desperately hopes people get his sense of humor)
"except of course the one right down from my house... they save me a ton of cash on groceries....." LOL :)
Love your rant ghost!
WALMART: First off, anyone who shops at walmart is a communist. Anyone who works at Walmart is a short bus communist, and every walmart in the world should explode taking all the communist with it....
except of course the one right down from my house... they save me a ton of cash on groceries.....
CD's BOUGHT FROM BIG BOX RETAILERS: They are typically garbage anyway (insert Brittany Spears, country music pop and the latest release from the last 5 kids who got picked on in High School for being in the Glee Club ... errrr I mean American Idol contestants). Besides, most Walmart shoppers and their kids would buy CD's full of static if Miley Cyrus told them too. So consider this, the money made from the purchase of those crappy CD's also fund the indie bands so many of you self appointed Gen Y intellectuals enjoy.
Without Brittany cash, you never would have heard of "Radio Head"... although, that would be a good thing... so chew on that Gen Y!
COVER ART WORK: Cover Art Died in the 70's, everything else is pretentious garbage picked by some annoying lead singer who thinks that he/she is the most intrinsic and intelligent person to address the worlds emotions. Often times however, it's just pent up insecurities about ones own music that forces the artist to add some sort of intellectual value to their efforts by getting a hep photog or artist they frantically find on Google or through their Coffee House Petulee wearing pot smoking (I like pot smoking for the record, even though I can no longer partake because of the job) suede wearing mushed up hair having twit friends.
However, what do I know, I havent bought but maybee 15 CD's in the past 10 years, and I'm 40, which makes me uncool.. the opposite of Hep.... I think.....
LINER NOTES: (Sorry CodyB & Robin, I know I am taking a hit here on your likability list) but we have never met the people that get thanked. Besides, the thanks given are at best, honest thank you's not meant for you or me the purchaser anyway, and at worst, are pathetic ass kissing efforts to secure future work or favors.
The person that wrote the song, is more concerned with the $$ than the credit, and no one cares who wrote the damn song anyway, people just want to tap their foot to it. And if your going to include who took care of "Sample Clearance", you might as well toss in the temp answering the phones at the studio that one tuesday you showed up with your "enterouge" and trashed the place.
The only thing worth a fart is the lyrics, and those can be gotten from the music, and if you can't understand the lyrics while listening to the music, then the music is garbage .. so stop listening to it.
I am looking forward to the day when "Big Brother" can tell EXACTLY what we are watching on TV and listening to on our music players. Finally we will have Northern Exposure on TV 24/7 and Jon Denver on every channel.... and the world will finally be at peace.
Ghost~
(Insert "Intermission" from "Ixnay on the Hombray" album by "Offspring" as recomended listening while reading my post)
By the way RX, Hard Drives are already in Cars for storage of music.
Yeah, you sling it pretty good there Ghost..there's nothing you could say to lower your likability with me.
I'm glad you said you were joking..it saved me from wearing the paint off my letter keys.
You only say that because you know that if the building was on fire, and the backstreet boys, madonna, miley cyrus, Nancy Pelosi where all inside... the only thing I would run in to save, are my reproduction Bootsy Collins P Funk Sunglasses.. soley out of respect for Bootsy...
In th eUK, 99% of single sales are digital. I'm not sure you can even buy a physical CD single anymore, though you must or they wouldn't publish that kind of number. And sales for the top 10 are healthy - generally over 200,000 units. But in the teens it plummets like a stone. 12,000 sales will get you to 17.
I agree with Cody that boutique stores for music freaks have a healthy outlook. What's generally overlooked in the death-of-CD-sales is the social function of music shops. My local HMV on a Saturday is heaving. They may not be buying but they're certainly having a good time. Keep that atmosphere in place and there will be an outlet for physical units.
And CDs are still about 80% of music sales.
"The only thing worth a fart is the lyrics, and those can be gotten from the music, and if you can't understand the lyrics while listening to the music, then the music is garbage .. so stop listening to it."
yes! Yes! YES!
Plan9 Music is our local heaven for vinyl and such.
There was one place that sold old stereo equipment and turntables that had a warehouse in back... where you could go and paroooose through the collection (1% being up front in the store, the other 99% being behind the counter in the warehouse) if you asked nicely.
Most didn't even know it was there. I was going there for years to buy Stereo Speakers (for Bars and Such) that needed to be loud, but throw away enough that if beer or cig smoke destroyed them it was ok.
Then one day a young kid walked in, gave a wink and a nod to the guy at the counter, and he slipped behind the desk to the door. It opened and what do ya know..
I looked for about an hour, MAYBEE hit like 15 boxes, of what appeared to be thousands... most of it I had never heard of before.
They apparently went out of business a few years later and the collection was bought and folded into this place.
Yeah, it seems like Europe, well at least what I know (France and The UK), isn't dropping the CD as fast as we are over here. Although the 80% number may be true here, the number of Cd's making the 80% is smaller..
There used to be a ton of CD's that might sell 10,000 copies in a year or two after release..those middle ground (but still profitable,usually indie) titles are pretty much gone.
I just bought a new Yamaha CD player with 200 GB hard drive for "uncompressed" storage. While mp3's are winning the war, the sound leaves a lot to be desired. Until the sound quality improves on digital downloads, I'm going to buy CDs until they quit selling them anywhere.
Most of what I am interested in any more is sold at the Big Stores any way that is probably why my music buying has been slowed so much. Anyway as long as Capndad has a burner we have access to all the Prog anyone could want. Nice tune also.
I agree w/ Funoka above - i'll probably stop buying CDs when they stop pressing them (which could be soon... or not).
I think I'll wait and see what people say when their HD crashes and the backup is also toast. I will then pull out the old reliable vinyl and still listen to it on my 1984 stereo/record player that has nothing to do with" compressed" sound.
you know.
i don't care as long as there is new music to listen to.
my "collecting" died with lp's and LOTS of disposable income
feh
good read
Ghost- Hard Drives in Cars, sounds like a good song title. Nice links in your rant above. I sense you have a foul taste in your mouth for the music biz. Were you on the inside at one point or perhaps a musician burned by the industry?
cpete- good point. In this day and age, you need to back up your digital library and then back up the back up- and then you still may not be totally protected.
LPs will play forever, albeit with scratches, clicks, pops and skips, in some cases. Tapes (cassettes) don't need back up, but if they get munched, and you can still play them, they never sound right again. CDs, if you get a scratch in the wrong place or too deep, it's curtains for that CD.
Taking the good with the bad, a copy of a digital tune will sound the clearest and the same forever, unless it's not accessible via an HD crash. When that happens, just make another copy from your back-up and you're back in business.
Nothing is 100% safe and indestructible, but digital tunes come pretty close. Once we have high def MP3s, only the true audio file will probably be able to tell the difference.
high def mp3's?
i ummm dunno
FLAC
None of the above. I just am playing part A.) devils advocate (Big Box Retailer) and B.) the 98% of the music buying market place (ages 15-25) public that could honestly care less if liner notes and album art is there or not.
I highly doubt, at least in our circle of trusted moggers, that we are part of that 98%, but I am sure there is a section of the Mogosphere that we rarely visit, where 50 cents and Taylor Swift people reside, that never looked at the cover of Hotel California, and saw the demon in the balcony... all they see is midrift and bling shots, its all they have ever known. There is no connection to what we once all knew, and held onto for the transition to Tapes then CD's.
It is also probably a safe assumption they could care less who produced the music, mixed it, was art director for, or sample technician for the latest Kanye album is.
Thats just my assumption though.. there are exceptions to every rule, so don't any young folks go getting their panties in a wad... I am just saying, the majority of $$ being spent today on music, is being done so digitally, by short attention span kids who tend to buy singles.
Yes, all of us spend money too, but we do so in record shops, and occasionally on Amazon.com. But everyone here has probably started down the path of purchasing more and more music (at least new music) song by song, unless its an artist they already know and trust.
And no, I have no facts to back it up.
i LIKE taylor swift :)
the demon in the balcony was Aleister no?
facts we want FACTS man
Anton LaVey damnit.we always said it was Anton LaVey
Hotel California
kool
and for the record does our Mog audience know what colitas are?
Well, this was a lot more fun than reading the original LATimes biz section article anyway. I don't really get it though. There was no reaction whatsoever to my statement that when other formats died and CD's came out at least people were still buying them. Do you guys think that this transition would NOT affect the actual manufacturing and stocking of CD's? I definitely enjoyed reading about the boxes. It just seems like a sad but natural progression which covers many things i've already had to get used to in this business and many of which are included in this thread.
The novelty aspect is fun to think about. People say vinyl's making a comeback, but I don't think that will ever amount to real numbers--it's more about the community, just like with analog gear for recording, people that hate MP3 compression and those that miss cover art. I like to think that there's always going to be a handful of people, many of whom hang out on MOG, that will still enjoy "the other stuff". But physically it's WAY harder to get there now. I'll go to Amoeba, but the local stores are all closed. And since we're talking about physical "product", not only is Border's gonna lose it's CD section but we're losing Border's itself! Do you guys have the Kindle iPhone app? Wanna talk about books? I went to a library last week and it was awesome.
So what are we doing? We're typing about things here and "hanging out" in our novelty community. When Jonh says that CD's are still 80% of music sales it needs to be taken in the context I believe he applied it in which is (as Cody reiterated) that only a handful of artists make those sales today. Besides CD's, I think we're already seeing the beginning of the end for P2P sharing as well and the focus is shifting to streaming music with the goal being phones. But I guess in a weird way, since i'm here to enjoy my life and i'm not going to be able to change everything to the way i'd like it, i've kind of adopted Pimp's approach. I'm definitely thankful that there's still great music being made and that we get to hear it. Brit's money may not trickle down to indie artists the way it used to and most radio sucks, but I still like to believe that Radiohead would get heard today. I've just gotta not think about the artists not getting paid for that.
I don't, I get randomly piss tested... I wouldn't know a thing about those little red haired covered things....... that smell so sweet.....
wait, ummm.... right.
I was never here
Great stuff Robin..I think the hardest thing to change is our expectations..The record biz folks had a hard time changing theirs and now they are being changed for them by force. The expectation that pros are going to find and present the best talent (for a profit) seems to be going bye bye..
And yeah, there will always be a community of hard core music heads..
Perhaps the federal government should buy an interest into the music companies, and regulate how much music can be streamed, and who should provide it, and how much should be put on Disc and Vinyl, so everyone is happy.........
IM KIDDING CODYB!....... Im Kidding!
Sorry about the earlier thread by the way, I could have been more civil in the discussion.
THAT IS IT!!!
puff puff
maybe if i had willpower i would have a good piss test job right now and not 2 weeks away from the street
well not willpower
but
stubbornness
All good Ghost..no worries.
CD's will, in fact, be around forever; tho not as a medium for music, but as garbage on our beaches, the new sand dollar
and attractive mobiles..good call amber.
a lot of people actually use them as coasters, but i'm sure eventually they'll replace magazine photos on the walls of "novelty restrooms".
God I hope not. I grew up on the CD. I fear it will become obsolete, but won't have the nostalgic value of vinyls... so it will literally die out. If i cant even go to a small record shop and pick a CD, then I will be seriously depressed. At least we will still have vinyls (I hope) for quite some time.
http://bipbipreviews.blogspot.com
If the CD dies, I will build a tomb for it - out of the thousands of CDs that I own!!!
yup / the CD died back in 2005 for me personally. its crazy that the vinyl has made the return that it has.
Its obviously more convenient to download an album from an infinite collection without leaving your home but its not the same. First thing when i woke up this morning was drive out straight away to buy john mayer's battle studies, to have the physical copy as part of my personal collection. The loss of the CD results in a loss in appreciation for quality of sound. Downloaded, compressed mp3 files played through laptop speakers is acceptable to the general public. Thats no way to listen to music.