UK Official Singles Chart Goes Digital

03-07-2014Tags: Marketing Insight

The Official Charts Company has announced that July 2014 will be the first month that digital music streaming will count towards the UK Official Singles Chart.

Previously, the Official Singles Chart has been based on sales only; whether downloads, CDs, cassettes or vinyl. From July 2014 onwards, the Official Charts Company will now include digital music streaming via services such as Spotify, Deezer, Napster, O2 Tracks (Musicqubed), rara, Sony's Music Unlimited and Xbox Music.

"Future-proofing"

An Official Charts Company spokesperson said the Official Singles Chart has "always been the music industry's most trusted and definitive measure of music popularity" and that the digital shift was about "future-proofing the charts."

According to the BBC, UK-based music streaming has doubled in popularity between 2013 and 2014; from 100 million to 200 million streams a week, and is currently averaging 260 million (June 2014). The first Official Singles Chart to include digital music streaming will air on BBC Radio 1 on Sunday 6 July 2014 at 6pm BST.

Billboard Genre Charts

However, the UK is not the first country to include music streaming into their singles charts. Sweden, Germany and the US set the trend, with the America's Billboard announcing a digital shift to their Genre Charts in October 2012.

In order to regulate the digital shift, the Official Charts Company have outlined that 100 streams will equal one single sale, that each single will have to be played for at least 30 seconds before it is counted, and that only 10 streams would be counted per internet user.

For more information on the digital shift, visit the Official Charts Company website.