ON THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CD

BACK TO THE FUTURE

The BBC has a good article on today being the 25th anniversary of the CD (aka compact disk), and what it has meant for the music and computer industries.  I remember 1982 almost like it was yesterday...how time flies.

Andrew B. Smith has a good post titled "Happy Birthday CD - the format that killed the music industry", that makes a key point off the BBC piece and another article:

"Robert Sandall has written a very good article in the latest issue of Prospect magazine about the economics of the music industry - and it is plain to see why the business is in such a blue funk..."

For example: "Although Britons still buy more CDs per head than anyone else—2.7 in 2006—the market for recorded music is in rapid decline. In the first quarter of 2007, the market for the top-selling 200 CDs in Britain shrank by 20 per cent compared to the same period in 2006. In the US, CD sales in 2007 are down by 15 per cent, in France 25 per cent, in Canada 35 per cent. The German market, once the largest in Europe, is now no bigger than that of the Netherlands."

Sandall argues persuasively  that the CD actually contained the seeds of its own downfall - and that some in the industry were well aware of this when it was first introduced.

"One of the few industry moguls to raise his voice against the digital format in its early days was the late Maurice Oberstein, an American who was latterly head of the Polygram UK (later Universal) label.

"Do you realise we are giving away our master tapes here?" he asked at an industry event. At the time, everybody was too busy counting the cash to listen. But as the advent of recordable CDs kickstarted a black economy in counterfeits in the 1990s, Oberstein was proved right."

Obviously, the movie industry didn't make the same mistake with the DVD, making sure it was locked down as much as possible both technically and legally from mainstream "ripping" and draconian region codes. 

But looking at the big changes afoot already in the video industry, catalyzed by companies like YouTube in 2005, it's sure going to be an interesting 25 year history for internet video in 2030.

Comments

[Renie Ravin]

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[meninweb]

Nice to know about the CD history!!
meninweb.blogspot.com