The last time I looked at data, the entire world sales (the dollar value) of recorded music is about 1/4 of what it was at the peak. This is the case despite people buying and accessing much more music than ever before. Theft through file sharing has changed the economic model such that music must be sold very cheaply to compete with stealing. That means streaming, people buying rights to single tracks vs. albums, etc. Physical media that costs a lot to produce is particularly non-competitive in this era.
So, to me, what is regrettable about the decline of physical media is not so much the loss of the particular medium, but, the conditions that cause the loss. This loss of revenue to file sharing means that artists, in particular, are getting far less money and only mega-stars continue to rake it in. Most other artists are worse off than they used to be.
So, to me, what is regrettable about the decline of physical media is not so much the loss of the particular medium, but, the conditions that cause the loss. This loss of revenue to file sharing means that artists, in particular, are getting far less money and only mega-stars continue to rake it in. Most other artists are worse off than they used to be.