|
. : Letters On Pages : .
. : Recent Posts : . Amazon.com Discounts Time Warner Cable = bad service Mark Mallory's First Pitch Opening Day Chuck Klosterman is Funny March Madness Update Griffey in Right Field? March Madness Update Update: Walter Reed . : Archives : .
January 2007 |
. : My Music : .
. : My Favorite Places : .
C. Trent Rosecrans . : Schamp : .
. : Contact : . . : Feed : .
|
|
Saturday, April 7, 2007Are Record Stores Disappearing?I was pointed to this article the other day from the NY Times. It is written by guest writers who happen to be the owners of a once popular record store. The article attacks the Recording Industry (RIAA) for ruining the CD and, by association, music in general. The article wasn't all that well written (this coming from me!) and kind of haphazardly addressed different things, but there were a few things I found interesting. Despite the major record labels’ best efforts to kill it, the single, according to recent reports, is back. Sort of.This statement I agree with, although I'm not so positive that the record labels wanted to kill the single. The single has always been a major sales tool in record sales. The single is what gets played on the radio and it is what gets people into the stores to buy the album. I do agree that during the cassette tape and CD era, singles were not major players in the music industry (except for radio of course). Back in the ancient days of 45's, singles were pretty big. I don't know why...maybe that's all kids could afford after they spent their money on coke and bubble gum at the Pony Keg. But now in the age of digital music, the single is HUGE. If you look at the numbers from iTunes, WAY WAY WAY more singles are purchased than albums. A lot of people like spending $1 for the one song they like instead of $15 for the CD. So I don't really attribute anything the RIAA did as being good or bad for the single. It's just the evolution of music. Later, the authors make one of my least favorite arguments: But instead, those labels delivered the death blow to the record store as we know it by getting in bed with soulless chain stores like Best Buy and Wal-Mart.Why are they soulless? Because they make the CD's that most of the country's population wants to hear inexpensive? Isn't that a good thing? Aren't lower costs better than the higher costs that it takes to run a pretentious independent record store? They are for me. And apparently they are for most everyone else...this is why the record store went out of business. Don't blame the RIAA (who, by the way, could probably be run better by two dolphins and a magic eight ball. Oh, and one person to write down the dolphins decisions. From what I hear, dolphins have poor handwriting.), don't blame the record labels, don't blame Wal-Mart and Best Buy, and don't blame Napster and iTunes. If you want to be really arrogant, blame your customers for "falling for it". but most of all, blame yourself for refusing to adjust to the new marketplace. Overtime there have been MANY industries that have had major changes and sometimes certain occupations become obsolete. Almost the entire horse and buggy industry was wiped out by automobiles. The steam engine industry was almost completely wiped out by better and more efficient engines. BOO to the automobile for putting people out of business!!! BOO to internal combustion engine creators for ruining lives!! I just tire of these old "you are ruining my industry and making me obsolete" arguments. Evolve with the industry, cut your costs, create value...but don't cry when you get passed up by more efficient and better run companies. Thoughts?
|
