The compact disc era may finally be entering its hospice stage

Thirty-five years after the format was introduced as one of the greatest audio advancements since the birth of recorded music - and unwittingly unleashed digitized music into the wild - the once indestructible compact disc received another existential wound in early 2018 after a report that two big box retailers were reassessing their approaches to physical CD sales.

Electronics outlet Best Buy will stop carrying most CDs in their stores, and Target is attempting to negotiate with distributors to switch to a consignment model, according to sources in the music business who declined to speak on the record for fear of jeopardizing business relationships. The news was first reported by Billboard.

The shift further confirms the format's precipitous fall: Since peak plastic in 2001, CD sales have dropped 88 percent, from 712 million units to 85.4 million in 2017, according to Nielsen Music.