The Music Industry’s Global Release Day Is Now Changed To Friday

Bianca Gracie | February 27, 2015 9:31 am
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Some may call it the impact of King Beyonce, but the music industry is shaking things up! The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (or IFPI) has officially changed the record release date from Tuesdays to Fridays worldwide.

So what’s the reason for the change? The UK-based music organization wants to combat illegal digital distribution of music from peer-to-peer websites and piracy, since albums typically drop internationally prior to reaching the U.S.

IFPI CEO Frances Moore wrote in a statement, “Music fans live in the digital world of today. Their love for new music doesn’t recognize national borders. They want music when it’s available on the Internet – not when it’s ready to be released in their country. An aligned global release day puts an end to the frustration of not being able to access releases in their country when the music is available in another country.”

He continued, “A global release day makes sense for one overwhelming reason – it meets the needs of the music consumer. In today’s globalized world, it makes no sense for new music to be released to fans on different days of the week. At the same time, we view this as a tremendous opportunity to breathe new life back into the release of music. Friday has a compelling logic to it, at the start of the weekend when fans most want to listen to and buy music, which is why it has been chosen as the day.”

The Music Business Association (who represents Spotify, Rdio and various U.S. music retailers) have voiced their agreements with IFPI’s decision. Look out for the Global Release Day change to take effect this summer.

What do you think about this decision? Let us know in the comments below!

[via Rolling Stone]

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