Why does Japan prefer buying CD to streaming?

[CarlyRaeJepsenStan]

So, Japan is the only major music market that hasn't been taken over by streaming. In Japan, people still buy album CD and even physical singles. Why is that? And why is there always a Japanese bonus track(s)?  Japan really fascinates me. They seem to like short and pale women: Carly, Avril,.... (Mariah is an exception).

[Blackout2006]

Because buying CDs is better than streaming and we all know that Japan has taste and is smart  

Spoiler

Btw, in the E.MO.TION album cover, Carly looks like a anime Japanese girl ngl

 

[CarlyRaeJepsenStan]

Just now, Blackout2006 said:

Because buying CDs is better than streaming and we all know that Japan has taste and is smart  

  Hide contents

Btw, in the E.MO.TION album cover, Carly looks like a anime Japanese girl ngl

 

I miss the 1990s when people had to go to the store and spent 10$ to buy an album. Nowadays streaming makes music feel disposable and has less value. About Carly, yes, she did look like an anime Japanese girl during Kiss era even thought she's half Scandivanian.

[Blackout2006]

1 minute ago, CarlyRaeJepsenStan said:

I miss the 1990s when people had to go to the store and spent 10$ to buy an album. Nowadays streaming makes music feel disposable and has less value. About Carly, yes, she did look like an anime Japanese girl during Kiss era even thought she's half Scandivanian.

I’m a GenZer actually lol  but I really enjoy collecting vinyls and CDs, and my classmates found that really cool and wish they could also collect 

[blonderoman27]

If I really love an album, I will go to Target and buy it or order the vinyl. I'm 28 so maybe that is why I prefer physical copies of things but I think sound quality from a cd is a much better experience than with streaming. 

Opening a cd case and getting that euphoria from flipping through the booklet, is unmatched by any streaming service. 

[redacted statement]

As far as I know, CDs are quite a lot more expensive in Japan. So much so that it'd be cheaper for one to import a CD from another country than to buy one domestically, in Japan. Japanese bonus tracks are added in order to encourage people living in Japan to buy CDs in Japan instead of importing.  Korea is another market that still sells physical albums incredibly well. K-Pop albums are packaged like actual collectibles, so it's no wonder that people still buy them a lot:

If Western artists sold albums like these, I would buy them all the time.  Imagine a Britney album with a photobook that's 100 pages long. 

This specific album, for example, has sold like 330k copies in its first week. That might not seem like a lot, but take note that there are 330 million people living in the US, whereas there are only 52 million people in South Korea.  The biggest boy groups sell millions, which is crazy. 

[blonderoman27]

How do you guys use the small gifs? I feel out of place posting huge gifs!...

[CarlyRaeJepsenStan]

Just now, blonderoman27 said:

How do you guys use the small gifs? I feel out of place posting huge gifs!...

click the emoticon symbol

[blonderoman27]

59 minutes ago, CarlyRaeJepsenStan said:

click the emoticon symbol

 it was that easy.... 

[Blackout2006]

4 hours ago, blonderoman27 said:

 it was that easy.... 

[Blackout2006]

Growing up in the digital age, I LOVE collecting vinyls and CDs. Just the feeling take of the plastic sleeve, look at the back cover, holding A FREAKING ALBUM on your hand, if you have a vinyl the cover art is HUGE, so like if you had oops I did it again album on vinyl, the cover would look SO gorgeous , then to read booklets and see the celebs pictures and lyrics UGH 

[Illegally EATEN]

The CD industry needs to co.e up with something new and cutting edge that cant be streamed in order to reignite album sales. First there were LPs, then cassettes, then CDs, whats next?

I believe some sort of hologram-music-playing machine is next in line 🤓

[PokemonSpears]

6 hours ago, iAlwaysSingLive said:

As far as I know, CDs are quite a lot more expensive in Japan. So much so that it'd be cheaper for one to import a CD from another country than to buy one domestically, in Japan. Japanese bonus tracks are added in order to encourage people living in Japan to buy CDs in Japan instead of importing.  Korea is another market that still sells physical albums incredibly well. K-Pop albums are packaged like actual collectibles, so it's no wonder that people still buy them a lot:

If Western artists sold albums like these, I would buy them all the time.  Imagine a Britney album with a photobook that's 100 pages long. 

This specific album, for example, has sold like 330k copies in its first week. That might not seem like a lot, but take note that there are 330 million people living in the US, whereas there are only 52 million people in South Korea.  The biggest boy groups sell millions, which is crazy. 

I didn't know that and it's awesome. That's what I've always believed that physical releases should be, nothing less. Sell them as real collectibles. 

[none]

they don't have to complain when Slumber Party gets changed to another version without notifying them

[MX3]

i thought japan always got bonus tracks because cds are more expensive to ship over there, so the extra track helps justify the extra cost they pay? 

[bitbitboi]

I LOVE CDs!! I actually have a collection of more than 300 (!)
And the day I can't buy a Britney CD, I'll cry.
I still can't believe they actually released "Glory" here in my country... I'm not sure what will happen with B10, though. I mean, they haven't released "Chromatica" yet, do you understand??

[ShatteredBoy]

13 hours ago, Blackout2006 said:

I’m a GenZer actually lol  but I really enjoy collecting vinyls and CDs, and my classmates found that really cool and wish they could also collect 

Same. Everyone else my age acts like I’m crazy for having CDs lol

[Kindcowboy]

CD’s have the highest quality sound of any format. More than streaming, records or cassettes 

[Blackout2006]

6 minutes ago, ShatteredBoy said:

Same. Everyone else my age acts like I’m crazy for having CDs lol

It’s actually not like as if CDs are like EXTINCT, lol. They might have a small share in music sales, but people still buy them, and hopefully it doesn’t become a antique of the...like....1990s-2010s? Vinyls have had a recent resurgence having sold 10 million records last year

[Codemysta90]

7 hours ago, blonderoman27 said:

If I really love an album, I will go to Target and buy it or order the vinyl. I'm 28 so maybe that is why I prefer physical copies of things but I think sound quality from a cd is a much better experience than with streaming. 

Opening a cd case and getting that euphoria from flipping through the booklet, is unmatched by any streaming service. 

I can definitely relate to this, and agree the quality and the experience of buying an album is superior. 
 

Japan is unique as far as its cultural tastes are concerned, and I think being geographically isolated from the rest of the world has an effect on this. Despite being technologically ahead of the US, Japan didn’t make the switch from flip phones to smart phones until years after the US, and they still have rental stores where people can rent music CDs.
 

It’s no surprise Japan’s marketing strategy is centered around cashing in on limited editions and repackaging of albums, especially since Japan listeners dominate almost 40% of the global music market. They are much more interested in immersing themselves in an experience and being a part of a cultural phenomenon rather than just being about the music itself, hence why Hello Kitty, Pokémon, and other anime franchises are so popular and bring Japan so much revenue.