Top 50 to include download sales
The Irish Recorded Music Association has announced that digital downloads will become eligible for inclusion in total sales figures for the Irish charts.
Any tunes downloaded from legitimate websites, including Apple iTunes, Eircom Music Club, Mycokemusic, Vodafone, Sony Connect, Bleep, Wippit and easy Music will be included in compiling the chart.
It is estimated that 14% of all music sales in Ireland are now from downloads, based on a survey conducted over the past three months.
The popularity of the market is highlighted by the massive hit Crazy by Gnarls Barkley, which went straight to No 1 in Britain on the strength of digital sales alone.
The results of the new chart will be known next Friday.
Ireland’s own Top 50 singles chart has been compiled since October 1962, when Elvis Presley’s She’s Not You became the very first No 1 in the Republic.
According to IRMA, the Irish chart is recognised as one of the world’s most accurate as all retail sale terminals have been computerised since the early 1990s.
“We have always had the most accurate chart in the world, representing over 90% of weekly sales through nearly 400 stores. Consumer purchasing is changing dramatically and we intend to keep our chart fresh by introducing downloads to mirror this changing market place,” said IRMA director general Dick Doyle.
However, legendary DJ Larry Gogan has announced that he will stop presenting the weekly Top 40 show on 2FM from the end of this month.
Rick O’Shea is set to take over the chart show which will be moved to a new time on Fridays of 6pm.
Although Gogan described his decision to finish presenting the programme as “an end of an era”, he eased the fears of his fans by telling them that he will continue to be on air with his normal afternoon show each Monday to Friday.
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