A vinyl record is an analog recording and cds and dvds are digital recordings.
Vinyl vs cd sales graph.
From 1999 to 2019 most expensive vinyl records sold on.
The riaa provides the most comprehensive data on u s.
Take a look at the graph below.
Amid all the talk of music streaming and the renaissance of vinyl the continued plummeting of cd sales hasn t been getting a lot of attention in recent years according to the recording industry.
The original question was whether vinyl sales will generate more revenue than cds in 2019 and whether or not that s a big deal.
Record sales volume vinyl lps in germany 2003 2019 lp ep shipments in the u s.
Recorded music revenues and shipments dating all the way back to 1973.
Original sound is analog by definition.
But can old turntable technology really match the we use cookies to allow us and selected partners to.
Cds and vinyl records are both audio storage and playback formats based on rotating discs from different times in music history.
The answer lies in the difference between analog and digital recordings.
In 2017 vinyl sales hit 25 year.
This is the definitive source of revenue data for the recorded music industry in the united states.
The cd audio is digitally encoded and read by a laser while analog vinyl audio is physically read by a needle.
1998 2019 retail value of lp ep shipments in the u s.
Vinyl revenue grew by 12 8 in.
Today physical format sales only account for 17 of the industry s revenue.
Vinyl records earned 224 1 million on 8 6 million units in the first half of 2019 closing in on the 247 9 million on 18 6 million units generated by cd sales.
Well looking at the final line graph it appears that vinyl revenue is increasing and cd disc revenue is decreasing.
There is however one bright spot in physical format segment.