For those of us with at least a bit of grey hair, we can all remember the experience of browsing albums at a record store. While music and record stores have sadly become a dying breed, the few that survive tend to carry a nice supply of used vinyl and CDs.
Those stores are about to get some major competition from none other than Amazon.com. Amazon has announced the launch of its Amazon Used Music Store. The Amazon Used Music Store carries used cassettes, CDs, DVD Audio, and LPs. At launch, the used inventory is massive. There are over 45,000 cassettes, 1.7 million CDs, 1,400 DVD-A, and over 800,000 LPs.
Used music items will be eligible for many traditional Amazon services, such as free super saver shipping. Just because you’re buying used doesn’t mean you’ll always be getting the best deal. A quick browse of Amazon’s used vinyl music collection showed that a brand new LP of Eminem’s The Marshall Mathers was cheaper ($14.99) than a used version ($17.00). The new version was also eligible for Amazon Prime. As with any online service, you’ll need to check all your options before you buy.
On the one hand, the Amazon Music Store will hopefully expand the love of legacy music to a broader audience. At the same time, it will hopefully save many of those legacy items from senselessly ending up in a trash heap.
On the other hand, I hope that the launch of the service doesn’t negatively impact the remaining boutique music stores. The wonderful service those boutique stores offer is oftentimes in the form of rare music. At the same time, the offer the timeless experience of finding other music by flipping through music in person.
