”Philips and Sony imagined the CD as a replacement for the LP record, which it certainly became. They couldn’t guess what else would happen to it. They didn’t predict that it would also become a medium for storing data. They didn’t know its first quarter-century would neatly symbolize the life cycle of many a modern technological innovation. And they almost certainly didn’t expect the CD would eventually contribute to the demise of the entertainment format it was meant to dominate.”
“The factor I think doesn’t get enough attention is consumers’ longstanding disenchantment with the rock album. As discussed here, once the digital age allowed music buyers to reject the album they did so in droves, whether by downloading single songs from iTunes or stealing single songs from peer-to-peer networks. And the CD presaged what would happen.”
If you are a music or tech geek, this is an ariticle well worth reading.
1 year ago