Vinyl Notes

The digital revolution is upsetting mass media. From movies to news, from books to music, the way we consume media has changed over the last 10 years. The music industry is in turmoil and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has a tenuous relationship with consumers at best. The old media models are not working anymore; the music industry is hemorrhaging money as consumers continue to flock to new formats.

Despite the apparent war against consumers for file sharing and supposed piracy, the reality is that the vast majority of consumers still purchase their music in music shops and through legitimate digital downloads. In fact, digital sales make up approximately 10 percent of all music sales in the US, with Apple iTunes (NASDAQ:APPL) as the No. 2 music retailer next to Wal-Mart.

Although many consumers still purchase CDs, the digital market is growing by leaps and bounds — particularly among people between the ages of 35 and 50. One draw of digital download is the ability to choose to buy one song at a time as opposed to an entire CD. According to PC World, nearly 50 percent of US teens purchase songs individually and about 1 million buys left the CD buyer market — and this trend is growing.

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