经济学人：日本人的CD情怀

When Prince sang "Tonight, I'm gonna party like it's 1999" on his 1982 hit "1999", he was describing a party during a turn-of-the-millennium apocalypse. He could have been singing about the music industry. In 1999, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic industry (IFPI), global recorded-music revenues soared to $22 billion ($40bn in 2023 prices). that revenue was largely driven by the compact disc (CD). Over the next 15 years, those revenues would fall as consumers turned to streaming. The IFPI recently reported that streaming accounts for 67% of revenues. CDs account for just 10%.

当普林斯在他1982年的热门歌曲《1999》中唱出“今晚，我要像1999年一样参加派对”时，他正在描述千年之交世界末日期间的一场派对。他本可以唱音乐产业的歌。 1999年，根据国际唱片业联合会(IFPI)的数据，全球唱片音乐收入飙升至220亿美元(按2023年价格计算为400亿美元)。该收入主要由光盘(CD)推动。在接下来的15年里，随着消费者转向流媒体，这些收入将会下降。 IFPI最近报告称，流媒体占收入的67%。 CD仅占10%。

But in Japan it seems time has stood still. In 2023, 39% of recorded revenues came from CDs there, making Japan the second-biggest music market globally. On the face of it, this may be down to demography. Nearly 30% of the Japanese population is 65 or older. But older listeners have cottoned on to streaming elsewhere: although 24% of Italian citizens are 65 or older, 65% of recorded-music revenues come from streaming.

但在日本，时间似乎停滞了。 2023年，日本39%的唱片收入来自CD，使日本成为全球第二大音乐市场。从表面上看，这可能取决于人口结构。近30%的日本人口年龄在65岁或以上。但其他地方年长的听众已经开始转入其他领域收听：尽管24%的意大利公民年龄在65岁或以上， 65%的唱片音乐收入来自流媒体。

Instead, two factors explain the Japanese market for CDs. The first is price controls. In 1953 Japan's government, concerned about its products being devalued, established saihan seido, or its "price retail maintenance system". This system gave copyright owners the ability to set the prices for certain classes of intellectual property, including physical products such as CDs. Because retailers and resellers could not compete on prices, they were inflated and consumers had few alternatives. Music companies are able to leverage this monopoly power to maintain the status quo. Japanese talent agencies also stopped their artists from being on streaming platforms.

The second factor is that, in the decades after the establishment of saihan seido, these talent agencies began to market performers as "idols". Part of the way that this idol status is maintained is through events, which fans are typically only eligible for if they purchase a CD. Some buy several in order to up their chances of an encounter with a pop star. The branch of Tower Records, a record shop, in Tokyo has several floors dedicated to idols. This type of fan culture has kept the CD alive in South Korea, too. Fully 33% of recorded-music revenues came from CDs there last year.

第二个因素是，在赛坂精堂成立后的几十年里，这些人才机构开始将表演者推销为“偶像”。维持偶像地位的部分方式是通过活动，粉丝通常只有购买CD才有资格参加活动。有些人买CD是为了增加与流行歌星相遇的机会。唱片店Tower Records位于东京的分店有几层专门供奉偶像的楼层。这种类型的粉丝文化也让CD在韩国保持活力。去年，那里33%的唱片音乐收入来自CD。

Despite this, however, the CD does seem to be losing its grip over Japanese music fans. In 2019 CDs accounted for 49% of recorded-music revenues on the island nation, while streaming only accounted for 18%. Last year streaming surged to 36%. Soon, it seems, Japanese listening habits will mirror those in the rest of the rich world.

然而，尽管如此，CD似乎确实正在失去对日本音乐迷的控制力。 2019年，CD占这个岛国唱片收入的49%，而流媒体仅占18%。去年，流媒体飙升至36%。很快，日本人的收听习惯似乎将会和其他富裕国家差不多。