These days, by the time a record’s release date happens in America, it’s already out there thanks to earlier release dates in other countries and piracy. Now a report in Billboard says that the music industry is thinking about having a global album release day that could start as soon as next July. The article cites sources that claim Fridays will be the global release day. At this point in time, Australia’s release date is on a Friday, so by the time the U.K. (on a Monday) and the States (on a Tuesday) get around to releasing the albums, the music is already out there.
While some sources say that major labels, as well as the RIAA and the IFPI, have signed off on the deal, others say that it’s not a done deal yet. Indeed, the article states that some indie labels and retailers would rather have the devout music fans come in on Tuesdays and more casual fans come in at the end of the week, after they get paid. As one label executive says, if record stores have two-thirds of their sales in one day, it will be slightly awkward and slow the rest of the week. Another place where that might be a bit odd is other entertainment industries, like booksellers, home video and video game releases, still have the Tuesday releases.
It’s kind of a no-brainer that this should happen, however. If all music fans know that on a Friday, they can go pick up new music, it’s generally payday, so they might be more inclined to buy music then. And it will cut down on some piracy. Then again, considering how much the industry has moved towards a streaming model, how much sales will be left to impact a year from now?
