From around 3pm this afternoon Amazon UK unilaterally decided, without any pre-warning whatsoever to my knowledge, to remove sound samples from their digital music buying platform. I thought it may be a temporary glitch, so called their customer services only to be told that sound samples are no longer available. I told them in no uncertain terms that I thought it was a rather short-sighted decision as why would someone buy new music, albums especially, without being able to sample it first. Customers will just go elsewhere. Let's see how long it takes them to discover this before they reinstate the samples!
If you are an artist/label/promoter or in any way involved with digital music sales on Amazon and disagree with this new 'policy', then I strongly urge you to complain to Amazon in the strongest possible terms as this may severely impact potential sales.
UPDATE 17 Sep 2021. It was pointed out by a reader who left a comment this morning, that I have also experienced, that in addition to removing sound samples, album/EP tracks have been split into individual listings so that it is now not possible to buy a complete album/EP in one transaction, you have to search for all tracks and select/buy them individually. How Amazon feel that this is improving the 'customer experience' beggars belief. I can only suggest that we all log a complaint with Amazon until they 'see sense'. This 'policy' will finally put the death knell into albums!
Apparently, I've heard from several sources, that Amazon has done this before and then reversed it, but as the reader's comments suggest, Amazon is 'probably' just trying to 'encourage' us to subscribe to their streaming service. I wonder how many more years before we will not be able to buy music at all on Amazon (or anywhere else for that matter except direct from artist/labels) and will be 'forced' to stream it. Now what will be an interesting proposition enforced upon us! Amazon's bean counters have presumably worked out that it is more financially beneficial for THEM to rent music than to sell it. So in future if you want to listen to music you better make sure you have a good wi-fi reception wherever you are! .
'Tail wagging the dog' springs to mind. The only way to 'respond' to them is to stop buying music from Amazon and DON'T subscribe to Amazon Music Unlimited! Until now I have generally provided links on images to Amazon so you can go there to buy, until this decision is reversed I will now stop doing this. The artists/labels suffer, the consumer suffers and ONLY Amazon think that they may benefit from this decision if you subscribe to them so don't let them win and vote with your feet and buy elsewhere and don't subscribe!
Yet another UPDATE 17 Sep 2021
It would appear that Amazon UK has reinstated the grouping of album/EP tracks! .. so small mercies ... but I wonder if the samples will be reinstated .. watch this space!
