I don't know if this subject has been mentioned before, apologies if it has.

Looking at my not very large but extremely heavy and bulky LP collection, I remember being pleased with the reduction in size coupled with the increase in playing time that came with the introduction of CDs. I now wonder if it is time for record companies to start putting their recordings on either cards or sticks (with a transitional period for people to adapt). I know there is the widespread practice of downloading from the internet but, as I understand it, this usually involves lots of file downsizing with, in my view, an inevitable loss of subtle musical information, so I would hope that commercial recordings not be reduced. Cards and sticks take so much less space than CDs, they can't be scratched or get degraded by fingerprints etc., and are subject to the same precautions as discs i.e heat, magnetism etc.

There should be a sound carrier which is physical, collectible, convenient, durable and high quality.

I don't think it's the media so much as the physical nature that's the problem to many people. They just aren't interested in going to a store and buying a physical music product. They're either interested in downloading it legally or taking it for free.

You can sometimes get lossless downloads which should be at least as good as the CD, usually better. Most people won't care whether it's compressed though. Why bother when you're listening on tinny earphones?