CD WAREHOUSE SHUTTERS
ONLINE OPS

CD Warehouse is the first significant traditional music retailer to shut down its online operations.

The company, which said it won't abandon its e-commerce business and doesn't plan any layoffs, will develop its Internet infrastructure, hoping to reintroduce the service at a later date, Webnoize reports.

Sources suggest CD Warehouse has been slow to implement its Internet strategy as rivals have begun to develop partnerships with online retailers and acquire content properties to merge physical and virtual stores.

Trans World, for example, recently took an equity stake in online retailer SecondSpin.com, Wherehouse Music merged its online operation with CheckOut.com and Musicland acquired a stake in Supersoni.com last year, all in an attempt to get a foothold in the burgeoning online market.