HMV calls in administrators

15 January 2013, 11:52 | Updated: 15 January 2013, 11:56

The high street music retailer opened by Sir Edward Elgar in 1921 is calling in administrators after competition from digital markets.

HMV has announced it is to go into administration, putting more than 4,000 jobs at risk. The retailer, which held around 35% of the CD market in 2012, has become the latest high street casualty of the shift to online shopping.

The company suspended trading in its shares last night. Administrators from Deloitte will continue to trade the stores while they seek a purchaser for the business.

The announcement comes as music consumers shift their allegiance from buying albums on CDs to downioading individual tracks online. With the rise of high quality digital downloads, the CD is quickly losing its lead as the best format for even the most discerning music consumers.

HMV stands for 'His Master's Voice', calling to mind its iconic brand: a Jack Russell dog listening to a gramophone. The logo was used on the front of the first store, opened on London's Oxford street 92 years ago by composer Sir Edward Elgar who supported 'dissemination of good music by the gramophone'.