The first “battle of the formats” in music recording began with the disc versus cylinder debacle of the early Victrola and Edison phonographs. However, once discs came to prominence after World War II, there was a new battle to be fought: that between the LP and the 45.
Rise of the LP
78 rpm discs, the standard before World War II, were handy enough but only held about four minutes worth of sound. In 1945, Peter Goldmark began work on a system which set out to change to a long format to reproduce classical music. Goldmark slowed down the revolving speed of the record, the density of recording grooves. even the sharpness of the playback stylus to create a vinyl-covered, 12-inch disc capable of holding 25 minutes of sound on each side. Released in 1948, the new format caught on quickly: $3 million worth were sold in the first year (Coleman 55-60, Szatmary 160).
The 45
In 1949, a new challenger arose, coming from the RCA Company of Victrola fame: the 45. Though it too only played four minutes of music, its 8-inch size supposed made it easier to change the record. It certainly raised the portability of discs and record players (Bower). More to the point, a single song was cheaper than an entire album, allowing the baby boom teenagers with money to burn to purchase music in droves. The competition between the two formats drove record companies to new production highs, churning out new music and the stars which created the golden age of rockabilly and teen music (Coleman 65-67, Szatmary 57).
TEchno Music: The Technology of Rock N' Roll 
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