For as long as anyone can remember, Tuesday has been the day when new music is released. That will change this summer, thanks to a decree by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), an organization that represents music labels around the world. After a "long consultation involving retailers, artists and record labels," the IFPI has deemed Friday as the new international release date for all records under their purview.
Reaction to the change has been polarized, with some—mostly the major labels—applauding the move and hoping it increases sales. Others, like Beggars Group chairman Martin Mills expressed feat that "this move will also lead to a market in which the mainstream dominates, and the niche, which can be tomorrow's mainstream, is further marginalized."
The sweeping decision isn't boiling the blood of every independent record store manager, however. Patrick Monaghan, owner of music and book store Saki and Carrot Top Distribution, can see both sides of the issue.
"As a label, having consistent street dates around the world may cut down on some grey area import-export that goes on and can undercut sales by licensees when copies from a different territory leak in," Monaghan said. "This is not a huge problem for small labels, but can be annoying for larger releases."
From the perspective of a distributor, Monaghan could even see the change making things run smoother.
"I think it will make life a little easier once we get used to the change," he said. "We will be able to ship people for goods to arrive on a Friday and not have to worry about them being tempted to sell records early while sitting on goods they can't release for sale until the following Tuesday."
Brook Stokes, general manager of Carrot Top, echoed Monaghan's opinion:
"[Changing the release date] probably will have a minor impact on our shop either way," she said. "It seems to make logistical sense for the distro if nothing else. Hopefully, it results in stronger weekend sales and quicker turnover for our shops."
As for the argument that independent retailers and labels were left out of the IFPI's decision-making process, Monaghan says he wasn't contacted personally, and didn't expect to be, but added that "more substantiative communication is always better."
The question on everyone's mind, though: Why were records released on a Tuesday in the first place?
"Tuesday always seemed like a weird day to me," Monaghan said. "I'm sure there was a reason for it, but it's always escaped me."