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U2, The Killers, Metallica's Label Kills The Single

03/28/2011
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(Gibson) Mercury Records, the U.K. label home to U2, The Killers, Metallica, Arcade Fire and many more, is to halt the regular production of physical singles with immediate effect. Whether on CD or (recently popular) retro-vinyl, none of its bands' singles will be planned for physical release.

The label admits it "lost money" on singles released in 2010. It will now only create physical singles when, according according to a Mercury spokeswoman, "it is guaranteed to make a profit. With physical formats now accounting for just over one percent of the overall singles market we are being more cautious."

Revenues for individual releases recently have been dropping quickly. Digital revenues are up in the U.S.: from $20m in 2003 to $4.2billion in 2009. But overall, U.S. music sales remain pretty much flat. more on this story

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