Jonathan Takiff: Record companies are trying to save the music CD

THE GIZMO: Saving (but probably not for long) the CD.

LIFE SUPPORT: I first attended the Consumer Electronics Show in 1983, the gathering at which co-developers Philips and Sony introduced the compact disc as "pure, perfect sound forever."

But as we all know too well, nothing is forever in this fast-paced world. Even steadfast supporters will acknowledge that the CD is now on the endangered gizmos list.

This pains me as a music lover, collector and reviewer. I still prefer listening to CDs rather than to music streams and downloads, for the added sense of presence and detail that a disc delivers.

I don't even care that people look at me funny when I pull out a relatively clunky CD portable on a train or plane while they're toying with a hardly-there Apple iPod or whatever.

Thing is, while they're lucky to have just an album cover and song title to study on their iScreen, I'm reading the CD program booklet, soaking in the lyrics, photos and credits. I feel I have a piece of the artist's soul in my hands, not just a flimsy digital file that could crash and burn.

THE BETTER IDEA: When I was in college (and this will definitely date me), I worked at an independent record store that had a one-price policy. Even if a particular title may have cost the proprietor more, he sold every vinyl album at $2.99, winning the loyalty of music lovers across campus.

When the CD first appeared, record companies had reason to jack up the retail prices, as the wholesale cost of pressing and packaging this mini laser disc was significantly higher - $2.50 vs. 25 cents for an LP. Plus, producers guaranteed that their new music carrier would never show signs of wear, unlike vinyl albums.

But nowadays a CD costs 20 cents to stamp out. And even with significantly enhanced royalty terms (much deserved) for the contributing talents, there's no way we consumers want to pay $15 for a CD. Especially with online stores like iTunes sticking with mostly $9.99 album downloads.

Music has been devalued. It just doesn't loom as large in most people's lives today.

ONE PRICE FITS ALL? Trans World Entertainment, parent company to the FYE chain, reached that conclusion last summer and instituted a noble experiment in about 100 of its stores (including the Broad and Chestnut branch) that established $9.99 as the everyday price point for all standard-issue (not "deluxe edition") CD releases.

The move has brought dividends. While Nielsen SoundScan-tracked U.S. album sales as a whole were off a whopping 22.4 percent in the first quarter of this year, FYE store revenues fell a mere 0.6 percent.

Of the major labels, the Universal Music Group has been the heartiest endorser of FYE's reduced pricing. UMG cut the wholesale cost of CDs to $7.50 and the "suggested retail" to $10. But other labels, worrying (they said) about "antitrust" issues if they just cut prices for this retail group and not all customers, have held on to higher prices, in some instances forcing FYE to either lose money on each sale, or not carry an important new title.

Now the FYE chain is preparing to change the game again. Starting next month, reports the industry trade publication Billboard, the chain will allow the pricing of a hot album by an Eminem or Zac Brown Band to float a few bucks higher when it first comes out, then slam it down to $9.99 after the initial demand is spent, but the more casual shopper might still be tempted.

BUT WAIT, THERE'S LESS: Proposing even more radical moves is Charlie Anderson, president/ CEO of the wholesale operation (Anderson Merchandisers) that puts all the prerecorded music into Walmarts and Sam's Clubs, as well as on Army and Air Force base stores, collectively accounting for about 12.5 percent of all U.S. music sales.

In his recent Billboard chat, Anderson spoke of the decline in floor space and inventory for prerecorded music at Walmart, Target and Best Buy. And he imagined a day "when they say it's just not worth it any more. Our projection is that it could happen at the end of three more years if nothing is done for the CD."

Ouch.

To keep the patient on life support, Anderson is proposing some serious mind-set changes.

Tops on his list? Artists should put out shorter and cheaper albums, boasting, say, six great tracks for 6 bucks. That would sit better with people now used to paying 99 cents for a single song download and who often are quick to complain about too much waste on a full length, 16-track album.

Better still, this shift could encourage artists to stay current by putting out short sets every six months, rather than trying to "work" that one album for 18 months, flogging the material to death.

Other suggestions? CDs should come with a personal identification number for the buyer to retrieve a free digital copy of the material. Labels should release songs on disc the same day the music is available on iTunes. And retailers should be able to buy hard-copy albums on consignment.

Follow his agenda, said Anderson, and the CD might last as long as six years as a retail phenomenon, buying the recording industry more time to get its replacement revenue streams running.

FINAL WORD: Maybe it's wishful thinking, but I don't think physical CDs will ever totally bite the dust. Artists crave a physical representation of their work and appreciate how CD and vinyl versions best replicate what they heard in the studio.

You may have to go to the artist's concert or visit his Web site, though, to nab the latest creative outpouring. Many musicians already tell me they clear more profit selling an album "direct" than by funneling it through an overhead-heavy major label.

SHOPPER'S NOTE: Want to lay your hand on lots of Apple products, digital music players and otherwise? The first Philadelphia Apple store opens at 5 p.m. Friday at 1607 Walnut St.

Send e-mail to takiffj@phillynews.com.