CD Release Change to “New Music Fridays” Begins Today

The switchover to New Music Fridays, the new universal day for CD and single releases worldwide is complete and begins today. From this point on, labels, retailers, and artists internationally in more than 45 countries will put out music at the same time across the globe.

The changeover will affect charts in many countries as well. The switch was made in part because fans expressed an interest in being able to purchase music on the weekends vs. early in the week or at other times.

“The switch to New Music Fridays is about getting new music to fans at the time they most want to enjoy it, whether that be in physical stores or online,” said Frances Moore, chief executive of IFPI. “It’s also an opportunity to recreate excitement around the release of music—the message is ‘Think Friday, Think New Music.’ The global release day also helps artists, labels and retailers by limiting the time between releases in different countries and thus narrowing the gap on piracy. The move made today has been a great example of cross-sector cooperation, involving labels, artists, retailers and others across more than 45 markets.”

The switch to “New Music Fridays” was overseen by an international steering group made up of the IFPI, WIN-Impala, the FIM, the Featured Artists Coalition, the Entertainment Retailers Association, and Music Biz.