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| The CD is still my preferred format. |
How about the younger generation? Do they still care about album artworks, liner notes and last but not the least, superior audio quality?
Do i-Tunes, Spotify and Pandora really have that niche in the market, so big that it is predicted to soon displace CD as the most dominant format in the music industry?
These are some of the questions I can think of in the wake of declining sales of physical media, most notably compact discs or CDs as we have all known through the years.
Yes, the shiny platters that came out in the early 80's that dislodged vinyl as the favored medium by record companies much to the dismay of vinyl lovers who'd go to great lengths arguing the latter's superiority both sonically and visually.
Thirty years later, the CD faces the specter of being wiped out by another format that's bereft of physical appearance, shape and size - digital downloads and online streaming.
Well, nothing lasts forever.
For all its imperfections, it's amazing that CDs lasted this long. From its much criticized infant stages to the loudness wars years up to its evolution spawning the SACD and DVA-A, these 4.75 x 4.75 inch platters did enjoy massive support from music lovers worldwide. The CD for the better part of two and a half decades was the acknowledged dominant format.
What record execs didn't anticipate was that they were bound to lose when first, CD recordables came out, then MP3/MP4, then downloaded music files and now, streaming.
Today's generation of music fans won't be caught dead clutching those huge cardboard sleeves or jewel cases. In its place are tiny phones, gadgets and those hideously overpriced "Beats" headphone hanging over their heads.
If they see a rack full of LPs and CDs, they are likely to shrug their shoulders and say they can have as many by simply downloading or streaming. They might even offer their services to have your LPs or CDs cleaned for a fee!
Times have indeed changed.
An autographed LP or CD of our favorite artist don't mean anything to them. The days of digging and rummaging through the bargain bins are now just a distant memory. The anecdotes associated with our album purchases are nothing but cliche and overt sentimentality to them.
Still, I'd hold on to my modest CD collection and won't be joining the download and streaming revolution anytime soon. Heck, I'm still ordering from Amazon and recently bought a CD player. Much like the vinyl lovers of yesteryear, it's our turn now to defend the superiority of our generation's format to the young ones.
That is, if anyone would care to listen.
CDs are on the way out no doubt but folks like me will still be here to support it till record bars cease to exist. We're seeing the death rattle, the last gasp before its eventual demise.
To quote lead character William Miller in Cameron Crowe's semi autobiographical 2000 flick Almost Famous: "Well, at least, I'm still here for that!"
