So, it’s come to this. Iconic record company Mercury Records has put an end to producing singles. The label, which is home to the likes of Metallica, Arcade Fire and The Killers, says it will no longer produce CD singles as over 99% of its sales are now downloads.

The company has also dumped vinyl singles after industry wide sales in the United Kingdom dropped from one million in 2006 to 152,000 last year. The company will now only produce limited edition singles when it is guaranteed to make a profit after making a significant loss on the format last year.

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