The L.A. Pilot -- Fall 2006 Final Project

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Thursday, Nov. 30, 2006

All 89 Tower Records locations across the United States are closing. The 46-year-old music retailer is $200 million in debt.
Photo:Cristina Byvik / Union-Tribune

Look out! Tower is falling

The legendary music retailer Tower Records is closing its doors for the last time. After filing for bankruptcy twice in the past two years, music lovers have to find another place to buy music. Tower's entire inventory is now on sale after a retail liquidator bought the whole company. The bankruptcy was a suprise to some, but others knew it was bound to happen. Industry experts warn this is an indication of how the music industry is going overall. Tower is not the first music chain to go out of business, and some say it will not be the last.


	The rise of downloads Record companies are finding new sources of revenue in what many call the future of the entire music business. Internet music sales shot up 77 percent last year as people continued to download from sites like iTunes, Napster and other sites like them. Many people are finding out that clicking is an easier way to shop for music than getting it the traditional way.		Pirates face the music Although downloading is now a major source of revenue for record companies, illegal file sharing is still rampant. From the days of Napster until now, the recording industry has said this is a huge problem. Sources say illegal downloading is costing the music industry billions of dollars every year. Now, the recording industry is taking legal action to keep piracy in check.

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