Popmartijn,
The first website you mention forgets and important factor "inflation". They neglect to show that if the average CD price in 1991 was 13 dollars, that inflation would have naturally elevated that price to 16 or 17 dollars by 2001. Instead the industry price in in 2001 per CD is only 14.64. I assume these are the wholesale price and not the final retail price that is sold to consumers. The final retail price sold to consumers was already at 15.98 in 1992.
Because they don't take into account inflation, they don't understand that CDs today cost less than they did years ago. The figures they use make my point even more.
Next is understanding when the economic recession started in the USA and to what degree it was a recession. USA GDP grew at a rate of nearly 5% throughout the year 2000. In fact, it was perhaps the the most explosive year for the economy, yet unit sales fell by 7% and revenue by 2%. So this idea that the recession is to blame falls flat on its face. The recession did not start until early 2001. At no time has GDP growth been less than negative 1% yet, in 2001 you have revenue decline of 4%. 2002 and 2003 have boosted that to 10% despite the fact that the economy recovered in 2002 and GDP is growing again. Were still seeing massive negative downturn in both Revenue and sales for the music industry.
Video Games cater to a certain market that has not really started to get into music. There is nothing to suggest that people watch more movies all of a sudden than listen to music so the DVD explanation also falls flat.
Bottom line, millions of people are downloading and burning their own CDs instead of going to the store to buy them. The more the technology to do this has become widespread, the greater the dip in sales.
Why go to the store to buy something you already have?
The first website you mention forgets and important factor "inflation". They neglect to show that if the average CD price in 1991 was 13 dollars, that inflation would have naturally elevated that price to 16 or 17 dollars by 2001. Instead the industry price in in 2001 per CD is only 14.64. I assume these are the wholesale price and not the final retail price that is sold to consumers. The final retail price sold to consumers was already at 15.98 in 1992.
Because they don't take into account inflation, they don't understand that CDs today cost less than they did years ago. The figures they use make my point even more.
Next is understanding when the economic recession started in the USA and to what degree it was a recession. USA GDP grew at a rate of nearly 5% throughout the year 2000. In fact, it was perhaps the the most explosive year for the economy, yet unit sales fell by 7% and revenue by 2%. So this idea that the recession is to blame falls flat on its face. The recession did not start until early 2001. At no time has GDP growth been less than negative 1% yet, in 2001 you have revenue decline of 4%. 2002 and 2003 have boosted that to 10% despite the fact that the economy recovered in 2002 and GDP is growing again. Were still seeing massive negative downturn in both Revenue and sales for the music industry.
Video Games cater to a certain market that has not really started to get into music. There is nothing to suggest that people watch more movies all of a sudden than listen to music so the DVD explanation also falls flat.
Bottom line, millions of people are downloading and burning their own CDs instead of going to the store to buy them. The more the technology to do this has become widespread, the greater the dip in sales.
Why go to the store to buy something you already have?