Is Vinyl Really More Popular Than Digital?
The latest news out of the UK is that vinyl sales have hit £2.4 million (just over US $3 million). Sales for digital downloads hit £2.1 million (just over US $2.5 million).
So, what’s going on? Do you think that more people are actually buying music in vinyl format rather than digital? If that’s true, then sales of turntables must be skyrocketing.
As usual, the numbers only tell a small part of the story. The fact is that vinyl is typically a lot more expensive than a digital download. DJ Tech Tools notes that “last week’s biggest selling vinyl was Kate Bush’s triple-disc live album Before The Dawn, which retails at £52. A download of the same recording is available for £12.”
I think a lot of people buy vinyl as a collector’s item. They frame it for the cover art rather than spin it on a turntable. Here’s the other part of the story. Turntable sales are static.
Do you buy vinyl for reasons other than to play it?
