Blisstunes

Study: Very Few Fans Are Actually Throwing Away Their CDs...

Sure, maybe you trashed your CD collection years ago, but that's not the world! According to a study just shared by Norwegian on-demand specialist Aspiro Music, consumers are only just starting to ditch their CDs, in very low numbers.  That is, even in the most streaming-happy countries in the world.

According to Aspiro Music and research group Norstat, just 1-2 percent of music fans across Norway, Sweden, and Denmark are actually trashing their discs or even giving them away. 

That's a surprisingly-low figure given the surging strength of streaming services in the region.  But a gray area immediately pops out, which is the substantial number of music fans deep-storing their CDs.  That suggests some attachment and interest in occassionally accessing these collections, but also a solid first step towards the garbage.

But wait: what about all those CDs sitting on a shelf, right in the living room?  Well, here's a surprise: people are actually listening to them.  Because Aspiro also found that more than half of music listeners are actively listening (and purchasing) CDs, despite ever-growing streaming adoption rates and continued strength from downloads.  And that figure is increasing.

At a top-level, CDs are getting the greatest usage from a graying population, though the generalizations end there.  Perhaps the biggest shocker comes from radio, which still accounted for more than 80 percent of listening in Denmark last month, and more than 70 percent in Sweden and Norway.  That is also paralleled in the US, where radio remains a surprisingly-entrenched and important source of daily listening and discovery.

And, it looks like there's still a tight battle between downloads and on-demand streams, with cloud-enabled downloads a wildcard in this race.  Here's a question about where fans think things are going over the next few years...

The full study is here, though brush up on your Norwegian (or get ready to Google Translate) before heading in.  The survey involved 1,000 participants from each country, with Norstat pegging its confidence ratio at 95 percent.

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  Tom Dennehy
  Monday, February 06, 2012

  Audio CDs are install discs for music.

  When I started in the software business, our products were mostly delivered as "shrink-wrapped software"—a sealed box containing a CD and a manual. You used the CD to install the software, then put it in back in the box and stored the package in a closet never to be seen again (barring the need to re-install after disaster).

  In later years it became more common for customers to download an installer and purchase an authorization key to enable use. Today many software products have now been replaced with cloud-based software services, requiring no local installation. The parallel to music is obvious. The industry has evolved from physical media to digital downloads to cloud-based streaming.

  Now that dematerialized play is the norm in my house, my preferred delivery mechanism for music is a download in lossless format. If a lossless download is not available, I reluctantly purchase a CD. The CD is used exactly once, to "rip" its content to the Library, then stored away in a cabinet never to be seen again.

  And apparently 30% of Danes agree with me.

  Reply

  Visitor
  Monday, February 06, 2012

  Well said. I treat them the same way. I keep them as my "license" to have the music, but the music is then played from the computer, through recording-studio digital-to-analog-converters, and then out to several sets of monitors as well as the hi-fi in the living room.

  If I could install CD-quality (or better yet, higher quality) digital music without need of the CD, I would. However, the selection of music available in CD or higher quality formats is still quite limited (stores like HDTracks and Beatport, etc).

  However, more and more, I am collecting vinyl and listening that way, at least to my favorite albums, and albums produced in the vinyl era (jazz, classic rock, early ambient).

  At least physical media retain some value, as well. 

  - Versus

  Reply

  @MonmouthStereo
  Monday, February 06, 2012

  Time to listen to vinyl!!!

  Reply

  MisterSoftee
  Monday, February 06, 2012

  Hey kids, here's one reason to keep your CD's and downloads.  One day, Spotify might go bankrupt in all its debt as investors run for the hills!

  Then you collection goes POOF!

  Reply

  David G
  Tuesday, February 07, 2012

  If that day comes, some other company will buy the estate and keep rolling with all the development costs covered. So chances are, nothing will change much for us "kids "

  Reply

  
  

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