It Looks Like Streaming May Be The Future


According to the RIAA streaming revenues were almost 4X the dollar value of all physical product (cd, vinyl and dvd) shipped in 2017. $5.7 billion vs $1.5 billion.

Digital Download revenues and CD units shipped declined while Vinyl squeaked out a 5% increase in units shipped. Here’s a link:

http://www.riaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/RIAA-Year-End-2017-News-and-Notes.pdf
128x128tomcy6
Streaming is just the latest attempt by the industry to achieve their holy grail- a monthly subscription service like cable tv. The problem is that the corporations don't always take care of the artists and once they have you locked into a subscription model, the next step is to start raising prices. Physical medium is simply more rewarding for the listener by offering a complete package of music, artwork, and lyrics to present a total concept to the consumer. Sure, streaming is a convenient way to sample artists, but it will never achieve the satisfaction of a tangible source. I am old enough to have gone through several cycles of this having given 8 "Peaches" crates worth of albums to a friend before I packed up and moved to New York. Then I started replacing my favorite albums in cd format because it supposedly had a better sound and was more convenient for storage. Now the industry wants me to replace my favorite cds by downloading them to a server spending money for the same product once again. I remember the first time I opened the Allman Bros. "Eat a Peach" album and admired the gatefold artwork which became the preferred platform for doobie rolling back in the day. Can't do that with a streaming service. I own an Oppo 205D and was disappointed to hear of Oppo discontinuing their product line because the product quality was a huge bang for your buck. There are simply too many cds in circulation to go away completely. I buy 4 or 5 a month paying $3 to $6 on average. I do burn them to a server in a secondary system mainly for decluttering/wife happiness purposes. However, on my main system, I am the geek that wants to see the art, read the lyrics, see who plays what, and who wrote the music.    
I actually like changing the CD. I have discs that have not been played in years, it's always fun to discover my old treasures. I do occasionally use Spotify. I think it is a PIA to use. Get up out of your chair and change the physical media.
@thepigdog ,
I disagee, Spotify has a cool 'Discover' tab that has listed composers and artists that I never would have discovered without it.
I often use Spotify to discover albums and search Tidal to see if they have a highrez version, usually it is the same sample rate.
B
Thanks gdnrbob. I’ll try that function but I’ll have to at least stand up every few songs.