Do MP3's really effect record sales?

The thing that he said happened all the time when people would be going through the racks and pick something, their friend would say I or x has that disc, don't get it, I will burn it for you later.

It hasn't effected my buying habits one bit, but then again I have a dial up and downloading mp3s is as slow as dirt.

I've got a friend that pretty much has never bought music. He was one of those that used to borrow CDs and make tapes and now he downloads mp3s and burns discs. I would doubt that he has ever bought any software or computer games.

this reads right to me, or as lars said in the nightline interview during one of his 2 or 3 lucid moments, 'this isn't about money man it's about control'

the record industry's built on the premise/dream of making one album sell 5 million copies, and then cashing in on licensing the tie-in lunchboxes. they make less money when 5 records sell 1 million copies, and the future is all about 500 records selling 10,000 copies each, tinier and tinier genres splintering off and successfully finding their own micro-demographics... something that mp3's are finally enabling.

labels and radio are overcompensating in the other direction, in ways that worked for them in past decades, slimming on air playlists even further, dropping fringe artists off the roster... i.e. dooming themselves. myself, with mp3's, I'm buying more records, but they're not the records their business model depends on selling millions of copies of.

apple's changed everything with their online store; after years of record labels trying to establish $4 single downloads apple's finally offering something worth paying for. I'm not sure they can patent the technology they're using, it's a business model that the major labels will have emulated within a couple of months once they have their own watermarks figured out... there's never been a better medium for pop singles than mp3's, they'll all be happy campers before too long.

Retail sales of singles by format

Physical | Digital | Total Sales
2002 | 43.9m | - | 43.9m
2003 | 30.8m | - | 30.8m
2004 | 26.5m | 5.7m | 32.2m
2005 | 21.4m | 26.4m | 47.8m
2006 | 13.9m | 53.0m | 66.9m
2007 | 8.6m | 77.9m | 86.5m
2008 | 4.9m | 110.2m | 115.1m
2009 YTD | 1.6m | 116.0m | 117.6m

Source: The Official Charts Company.

http://www.bpi.co.uk/press-area/news-amp3b-press-release/article/2009-is-record-year-for-uk-singles-sales.aspx

43.9m to 1.6m in 7 years for physical sales is more striking to me than the sharp downloads increase somehow. presumably it's not as steep for albums - still over 50% drop tho i'm guessing.

But overall sales have quadrupled in 5 years: 2004: 32.2 mn, 2009ytd: 117.6 mn. I find that quite surprising. Did singles sales really profit that much from the mp3 format?

album sales presumably dropping because people are going to buy individual tracks off them if they don't like every track, right? (as one of many reasons.)

as does this just mean singles or any individual tracks bought?

Lies, damned lies, and statistics. This doesn't adjust for the dramatic drop in physical single production - you can't buy physically what doesn't exist!

you can't buy physically what doesn't exist!

This doesn't adjust for the dramatic drop in physical single production - you can't buy physically what doesn't exist!

true but what % of singles released this year included physical format - i would've thought it would still cover at least two thirds of the year's chart hits (top 40 if not 75) but no idea really

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/64133000/gif/_64133218_uk_singles_chart624.gif

Bear in mind we're only two and a half years into the 2010's...

Mull of Kintyre? Wut is that?