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| Volume 11, No. 43 |
July 28-3, 2010 |
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| | R.I.P. CDs? Will CDs Become collectibles? | | By Mía R. Cortez | |  If someone on your list wants a CD for Christmas, they’re part of a dying breed of consumers that are quickly becoming collectors. Three years ago, CDs accounted for 94 percent of music industry profits. But by the middle of this year, states a recent New York Times article, the share had slipped to about 77 percent. The increase in music downloads is the main reason for the rapid decline of CD sales, but other factors have come into play as well.
“It’s not only fundamental changes in the music industry, it’s an economic recession,” said George Reynoso, owner of All That Music at 1506 N. Lee Trevino.
All That Music opened in El Paso in 1980. Reynoso predicts his store will soon be the last exclusive music store standing in El Paso, but he doesn’t expect to remain in the same location much longer.
“We’ve been trying to downsize for a couple of years, but we’ll start actively looking more next year,” Reynoso said. “We’re very likely going to be an outlet for collectibles. If we can be the last one standing, we can pull through.”
The FYE store on Sunland Park Drive closed earlier this year and anonymous sources said the Cielo Vista location was set for closure by the beginning of 2010. The FYE corporate office could not be reached for comments. Retail giants Best Buy and Wal-Mart have also recently downsized their music departments.
“When retail giants were able to start selling CDs at below cost, music turned into a marketing hook to get younger demos into their stores to get other things,” Reynoso said.
1983–2024ish?
The first compact discs were released in October of 1983. Nearly 20 years later, in 2003, legal music downloads were created. One of the first online music sharing services, Napster, existed between 1999 and 2001. In 2005, digital sales accounted for only 8 percent of all music sales. The other 92 percent were CDs and other physical items. This year, digital has grown to 40 percent, according to the Florida Times-Union.
“Convenience has perpetuated the trend,” said Tony Rancich, director of Sonic Ranch Recording Studio in Tornillo, Texas. “(The decline of CD sales started) with the popularity and closing of Napster - people got used to file sharing – then with advent of iTunes – that made it so easy to buy and download music legally.”
Rancich too believes that CDs are quickly becoming memorabilia – a nostalgic thing of the past.
“There will always be CDs for people who want the tangible product and artwork. Somewhat like people who still collect vinyls, but it’s definitely being phased out more and more every year,” he said.
While CD sales remain more profitable for the music industry than downloads, Rancich said artists have adjusted to the changing times.
“The whole revenue strain is shifting,” Rancich said. “The social networks are playing a huge role in artists’ marketing of themselves, much of which is being done independently. Artists need to be present on all these networks and more than ever take a very active role in their own branding and marketing. Touring has become the major revenue stream, with merchandise and publishing, which includes movies and placements of their music.”
There were about 9,500 chain music stores in the U.S. in 1991. By 2006, that had dropped to 2,000 and has continued to decline, according to Billboard magazine. Older demographics are still purchasing CDs, Reynoso said, but not enough to make up for what used to be.
“People 45-plus are (still buying CDs), but they don’t frequent stores but twice a year,” Reynoso said. “Younger demographics used to buy CDs twice a week. But they no longer need a physical product to trade music. They have an attitude that ‘music is free, why should you pay for it.’”
El Pasoan Steven Lawson, 24, said he still buys CDs, but mainly at the shows of bands who pass through town.
“I’ll buy them at shows, because it’s like getting to listen to the music before you buy it,” Lawson said. “It comes down to whether a CD is worth buying. If there are only a few good songs, it’s better to download them.”
The Revival of Vinyl
While the masses are rejecting clunky old CDs and opting for a click of a button and tiny devices that store thousands of songs, some are heading the opposite direction.
“Vinyl hasn’t gone away for a reason. People have always loved it. In 50 years people will still be selling and buying vinyl,” said Stan Stack, owner of The Headstand at 4409 Dyer. The Headstand is a local supplier of CDs and vinyls that has been open for 35 years.
A recent Reuters article stated that vinyl record sales reached 1.9 million units in 2008 and are on track to sell nearly 2.8 million units in 2009. While CD sales dropped 35 percent, from 553.4 million to 360.8 million from 2006 – 2008, vinyl record sales grew 119 percent, according to a recent article on News Journal Online.
“It’s like a poster I can listen to,” Lawson said. “I know more people who buy vinyls than CDs – I think the quality and aesthetic value is better.”
Vinyl has its own “je ne sais quoi,” Rancich said.
“It has its own emotional experience, the big artwork, the needle, style and sound – it’s a different experience,” he said.
“Whenever things change, the trends go back to the way things used to be. People miss the experience. CDs don’t seem to have those same nostalgic elements, but there will be a nostalgia for them – a CD is a higher quality of sound than an MP3.”
Turntable sales are increasing, too. Americans bought only 275,000 in 2006, but sales jumped to more than 500,000 in 2007, according to the latest available data from the Consumer Electronics Association. Turntables range from $100 to $300,000, and Best Buy now carries up to two dozen – from traditional types to ones that convert records to CDs or plug into a computer so songs can be downloaded to MP3s and iPods, the News Journal article states.
The Sunland Park Best Buy has one Sony turntable available in store, for $149.
Like the CD market, DVDs have a short life expectancy.
“In the physical DVD market, even with the advent of Netflix and Redbox, there is a projected life of five to eight years,” Reynoso said. “Overall, with CDs and DVDs, I think people should keep a hard copy. It’s like having a book on a shelf. That’s what it’s for.”
Comments or questions about this story? E-mail Secret@whatsuppub.com
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