I’ve heard that hookers and drug dealers still use beepers quite often. (I have no experience with either, but a former coworker claimed to know of such things.) It makes sense, if you think about it: beepers are probably pretty cheap, because they’re obsolete technology. So, if the owner needs to get rid of the beeper in a hurry, it’s no big financial loss.
I don’t know of any big music stores in the Detroit area, either. There are small independent places (that all look like they’re one bad week away from going under) and then there’s places like Best Buy and Wal-Mart. I know I haven’t bought an album in years. I buy my music on Napster, or occasionally from other online music stores. I then burn the songs to CDs, so I have backups in case my computer crashes or something. As a bonus, I only have to buy the songs I want, and not buy a CD with one or two good songs, and a dozen crappy filler songs.
I think physical albums (be they on LPs, cassettes, CDs, or whatever other media) are on the way out. Music is going to become almost exclusively single songs. Much like it was on the “old days,” when records contained one hit song, plus a “B-side.” Except there won’t be a B-side or a record, you’ll just plunk down a dollar to download David Cook’s latest hit song.
That will never happen. There will always be someone willing to put out music in physical form, even if only for nostalgia’s sake. Even today, people are still releasing vinyl.
Nah, that won’t happen (as an exclusive entity) as long as there are still artists who care about filling their albums with all good songs, and do. There are plenty of artists like that and always will be. The people who only want the mainstream hits will buy what they want, and the people who want full albums by their favorite artists will buy what they want. That’s how it’s always been and it won’t change.
Why? Will people stop living in houses? Or do you think that the world will go Communistic on the issue of living space?
As long as there’s something to sell, you’re going to need people to sell it. Yeah, the internet is great for showing one what is available, but as long as there is a need to look, see, touch, and be cajoled, it’s never going to replace real estate agents. Or car salesmen, or retail stores, etc etc etc. This is doubly-true on big ticket items like a house.
I don’t buy any albums that have “filler songs”. I suppose they’re more common in terrible industry-promoted CDs.
No, CDs are going to continue to be sold for quite a while in one place - at the concert. Every CD I’ve bought in the last few years has been directly from a singer, band or their assistant at a concert. Which I then get autographed. I get music plus a unique souvenir of the occasion. And the artist gets a much greater percentage of the sale price then they would if it was sold through any retailer. I’ve seen plenty of shows where the musicians made far more money from CD sales than from the venue.
Agreed, but the days of percentage-based commissions and high incomes for heavy sellers will be gone. The value add of real estate agents is nowhere near $30K on a $500K house sale, yet 6% was (is?) the going rate across much of America.
Sanitary napkin belt manufactures. I doubt any person under 30 knows what a sanitary napkin belt is, let alone has used one. Adhesive pads were one of the best inventions in my lifetime.
