Free streaming plays to be added
The Official Charts Company have hinted that a major shake up of the British charts could be due to take place, with the organisation set to include free streams in the make up of chart positions.
Since the dawn of the internet, the music industry has been in constant transition. Often changing from day to day, the industry has struggled to adapt to a market place where an entire back catalogue can be downloaded in a half hour.
With debate still raging over the benefits and drawbacks of downloading, the Official Charts Company - who run the UK charts - have hinted that it is possible that free streams could be taken into consideration.
Currently, only sales are used to define chart positions. Previously, only physical formats were taken into consideration but the explosion growth of the internet rendered this obsolete. Gnarls Barkley's hit single 'Crazy' earned the honour of becoming the first single to gain the number one position on download sales alone.
However in a new interview Martin Talbot, managing director of the Official Charts Company, has hinted that a major new shake up could be around the corner.
"The key task that we've been getting to grips with over the past 18 months has been ensuring that post-download, and post-permanent ownership of music, we're also counting how consumers are consuming their music in other ways," he said.
"The charts have always been there as a popularity poll, as a means of identifying what are the hottest records of the moment."
"That's been relatively simple when people have bought stuff to keep forever. But that's going to become increasingly more complicated."
As things stand, plays on websites such as We7 and Spotify are not held in consideration when creating the charts. Under new proposals, this would change bringing the British charts in line with other territories.
In many other countries radio airplay is used as a chart signifier, with the United States' Billboard charts breaking down market information in a huge variety of categories.
Talbot claimed that the introduction of web streams into the charts was inevitable. "I'm sure it will come upon us quicker than we might anticipate but none of us really know when it will happen," he said. "I think ultimately it's bound to happen. But that could be five years, it could be 10 years, it could be 20 years."
Since the dawn of the internet, the music industry has been in constant transition. Often changing from day to day, the industry has struggled to adapt to a market place where an entire back catalogue can be downloaded in a half hour.
With debate still raging over the benefits and drawbacks of downloading, the Official Charts Company - who run the UK charts - have hinted that it is possible that free streams could be taken into consideration.
Currently, only sales are used to define chart positions. Previously, only physical formats were taken into consideration but the explosion growth of the internet rendered this obsolete. Gnarls Barkley's hit single 'Crazy' earned the honour of becoming the first single to gain the number one position on download sales alone.
However in a new interview Martin Talbot, managing director of the Official Charts Company, has hinted that a major new shake up could be around the corner.
"The key task that we've been getting to grips with over the past 18 months has been ensuring that post-download, and post-permanent ownership of music, we're also counting how consumers are consuming their music in other ways," he said.
"The charts have always been there as a popularity poll, as a means of identifying what are the hottest records of the moment."
"That's been relatively simple when people have bought stuff to keep forever. But that's going to become increasingly more complicated."
As things stand, plays on websites such as We7 and Spotify are not held in consideration when creating the charts. Under new proposals, this would change bringing the British charts in line with other territories.
In many other countries radio airplay is used as a chart signifier, with the United States' Billboard charts breaking down market information in a huge variety of categories.
Talbot claimed that the introduction of web streams into the charts was inevitable. "I'm sure it will come upon us quicker than we might anticipate but none of us really know when it will happen," he said. "I think ultimately it's bound to happen. But that could be five years, it could be 10 years, it could be 20 years."
Gnarls Barkley
