Farewell to HMV. Could this herald the end of the CD?

HMV record stores have long been a feature of most large towns and cities in the UK. As an avid buyer of CDs at one time, I found it rather difficult to walk past one of their stores without venturing in and relieving myself of some of my hard earned cash. However in recent times I have spent less time in the stores and more time online. Now my purchases tend to be in download format or if I do purchase a CD it is more often than not, online. I mean let's face it, it is invariably cheaper.

Going into HMV stores in recent times has been something of a depressing experience as I have found myself having to venture deeper into the shop to find the diminishing stock of CDs. Now, it seems to focus more on DVDs, games, assorted electrical accessories and an assortment of books, posters and tee shirts. Yet, I still find it difficult to walk past a store, mainly because high street alternatives are few and far between.

Last weekend I made what may be my last visit to an HMV store. Once again I came away empty handed despite the fact that a 'blue cross' sale offered 25% off many items including some splendid box sets. The trouble is I already owned all the ones I was interested in and most I had purchased - yes, you guessed it - online.

Now I hear that the company has gone into administration and in the UK, over 4,000 jobs could be lost. My heart goes out to the people concerned.

Do I feel partly responsible for this demise? Well to I certain extent I guess I do but let's be honest, if HMV are charging £30 for an item and the same item can be purchased online for £20, what would you do? And an ironic aspect of this is that HMV were offering their own stock far cheaper online. Under such circumstances it appears ludicrous to maintain large stores in prime locations while money is being lost hand over fist.

My final thoughts lie with people who now hold gift cards and vouchers from HMV as I understand that these will not be honoured. I had considered buying my son one for Christmas. Thank goodness I didn't!

I remember back in the day when a good part of my Saturday would be spent in HMV, Virgin or some of the other independent record shops that existed in our area. We would listen to records in some of the separate booths or later on headphones while lounging on one of the leather sofas put there for that purpose. Then I would part with my cash and carry my treasured album(s) home on the bus. Happy days indeed but as Bob Dylan said 'Things Have Changed'.