«People simply don’t have that big of a use for the radio anymore. The iPod is more convenient. You don’t have to keep changing the station every five minutes, you don’t have to listen to advertisements, and you don’t have to listen to some crazy DJ’s blabber on while you drive to school or work in the morning. The iPod is built into everything from cars to airplanes. It’s even driven companies out of business. For example, Tower Records is closing up shop. Sony Walkmans have essentially been replaced with iPod shuffles and nanos when it comes to working out. This device, this music player, caused a revolution. People were saying it would be “just another fad” and “gone in a few years” when it started to get popular. But when everyone from George Bush to the Pope has one, the decline of the iPod doesn’t seem to be coming anytime in the near future. It’s not a fad, it’s a new way of life. Another thing: Podcasting is replacing radio shows. As podcasting grow in popularity, radio shows decline in popularity. In the past, people would have to listen to some person blabber on about random and sometimes idiotic topics (and when I say random or idiotic, I mean, the pinnacle of random or idiotic). Now, people can now listen to whatever they want, whether it’s TWiT or CNN Headline News. (...) iPod really did kill the radio star; it’s driven companies out of business, replaced radio shows, and built itself into everything from cars to planes. No one knew that this device would ever have the effect it has had on us today.»
fonte: «iPod killed the radio star», The MacMind, 4/01/07
«Historically, radio has been good at adapting. When Franklin Roosevelt gave his “fireside chats”, radios were in the living room and families gathered round them during prime time. Then television came along, and radios migrated to the car for use during rush hours. Podcasting may herald yet another migration, to a place and context yet to be determined»
fonte: «Heard on the street», Economist, Apr 20th 2006
«(...) For listeners, the appeal is threefold. First, they become their own programmers, mixing the music and talk feeds that they enjoy. This liberates commuters, say, from commercial radio stations that, in America especially, seem only ever to get dumber and duller. Second, podcasts liberate listeners from advertising, and thus put an end to the tedious and dangerous toggling between the car radio's pre-set buttons at 100km an hour. (However, some podcasters are experimenting with putting advertisements into their podcasts.) Above all, the time-shifting that podcasts make possible liberates people from having to sit in their parked cars to hear the end of a good programme. For creative types, professional or amateur, the appeal of podcasting is much the same as that of other participatory media: it dramatically lowers the costs of producing content. All they need is a microphone, a computer and an internet connection, and most people already have those. (...) Mr Mays claims that when people buy an iPod they will reduce their radio listening for a few months, but then increase it again to educate themselves about new music. “And where else to go for music than their local radio station?” asks Mr Mays. If they are young, they will go anywhere but to their local radio station, says David Goldberg, the music boss at Yahoo! “The odds that you and I like the same five songs in a row are very low,” he says. “If you hate Metallica, you're not going to sit through three minutes hoping that the fourth minute gets better.” To young people today, song sequences are simply “playlists”, which happen to be among the easiest things to share with friends online, so this is what Yahoo! concentrates on doing. It lets people listen to music (for a small monthly subscription or pay-by-download) and then rate the song. Yahoo! then uses its knowledge of the online communities formed by its users to recommend the right kinds of songs “by connecting you with other people who like the same music”, says Mr Goldberg. The effects on radio, while not lethal, will therefore be large. Radio broadcasters understand that they need to make commercial radio less disagreeable to listen to, which above all means shorter advertising interruptions. This is why Clear Channel has introduced a campaign called “less is more”, in which it sells fewer minutes to advertisers in the hope that this will drive up ratings and prices.»
fonte: «Heard on the street», Apr 20th 2006
From The Economist»,Apr 20th 2006, From print edition
«(...) It is not quite true, therefore, that podcasting is to audio as blogging is to text. Podcasting is about “time-shifting” (listening offline to something at a time of one's own choosing, as opposed to a broadcaster's), whereas reading blogs requires a live internet connection and a screen. More subtly, podcasts are different from blogs and wikis in that they cannot link directly to other podcasts. This makes podcasting a less social, and probably less revolutionary, medium. Nonetheless, its rise has been nothing short of astonishing. Mr Curry's own podcast, The Daily Source Code, has several million listeners. Apple's iTunes, the software application and online music store that makes iPods work, currently lists 20,000 free podcasts and is adding them at a fast clip, all before podcasting's second birthday. (...) Does podcasting therefore spell the end of radio? “I don't really buy into that per se; what we're really seeing is a big mash-up of stuff,” says Mr Curry, the podfather. Podcasting, terrestrial radio and another newcomer, paid-for (ie, mostly advertising-free) satellite radio, are all carving out their niches in people's crowded media lives. The limiting factor of podcasting, says Mr Curry, is that it is “inherently asynchronous” (ie, not live). “If they find Osama bin Laden, don't go running to your iPod,” he adds. Breaking news, call-in shows (an old-fashioned form of participatory media) and other live programming will still work on terrestrial radio. This might lull radio bosses into a false sense of security, however. “I'm not sure that the average consumer is going to want to hear, you know, Joe podcasting out of his garage,” says Mark Mays, the chief executive of Clear Channel Communications, America's largest radio broadcaster with 1,200 commercial stations. Mr Mays claims that when people buy an iPod they will reduce their radio listening for a few months, but then increase it again to educate themselves about new music. “And where else to go for music than their local radio station?” asks Mr Mays. (...) The effects on radio, while not lethal, will therefore be large. Radio broadcasters understand that they need to make commercial radio less disagreeable to listen to, which above all means shorter advertising interruptions. This is why Clear Channel has introduced a campaign called “less is more”, in which it sells fewer minutes to advertisers in the hope that this will drive up ratings and prices. Historically, radio has been good at adapting. When Franklin Roosevelt gave his “fireside chats”, radios were in the living room and families gathered round them during prime time. Then television came along, and radios migrated to the car for use during rush hours. Podcasting may herald yet another migration, to a place and context yet to be determined.»
fonte: «Heard on the street»,Apr 20th 2006, From The Economist print edition
«A forte implantação da Internet no escalão etário em referência revela que há igualmente a possibilidade de cada vez mais jovens escutarem a sua rádio preferida através da Internet. Esta será uma audiência que procura também a designação do nome da música e do artista que está a tocar, a possibilidade de participar em passatempos ou os endereços de correio electrónico dos locutores. A maior parte das estações analisadas disponibiliza todos estes elementos, mas há um receio geral de inovar e arriscar outros conteúdos, porque isso implica a utilização de recursos técnicos e humanos que muitas vezes as estações não dispõem e para os quais, muito possivelmente não terão qualquer rendimento. As estratégias operacionais desenvolvidas baseiam-se essencialmente na ideia de veículo de promoção para a estação e no eixo estabelecido pelo potencial interactivo da Internet, estando a generalidade das estações pouco vocacionada para a produção de conteúdos que explorem os principais traços da identidade da Internet. (...) Uma fórmula encontrada passa pela disponibilização de informações paralelas sobre os artistas e as músicas, agradando aos usuários e satisfazendo ao mesmo tempo as necessidades das editoras, que encontram na Internet um campo fértil para a promoção dos seus artistas, através de dados informativos, realização de passatempos e publicidade».
Cordeiro, Paula, «A rádio de modelo multimediático e os jovens» in http://bocc.ubi.pt/pag/cordeiro-paula-radio-modelo-multimediatico.pdf (pág. 18)
«Nesta conjuntura, a ameaça não é a Internet em si, mas a Internet enquanto novo suporte para a rádio, que assim pode perder ouvintes no seu suporte tradicional, para ganhar novos ouvintes on-line. O que ainda não se sabe, é se com os avanços da tecnologia, dos programas informáticos e o consequente aumento da utilização da Internet, os internautas irão ouvir as estações que estão na rede e disponibilizam a escuta das suas emissões em tempo real, ou se passarão a escutar rádio cuja existência se limite à rede e que graças às possibilidades tecnológicas, reconverte o conceito de rádio. Essa reformulação do conceito pode decorrer da adopção de um esquema de múltiplos canais, da total ausência da presença humana, ou por outros factores relacionados com a discursividade do próprio meio, que modificam o habitual esquema de recepção da comunicação radiofónica e irão desenvolver novas maneiras de usar a rádio graças ao potencial da Internet.» (Cordeiro, Paula, «A rádio de modelo multimediático e os jovens» in http://bocc.ubi.pt/pag/cordeiro-paula-radio-modelo-multimediatico.pdf (pág. 2 e 3)
ou
«Tradicionalmente conhecida como um meio imediato e irrepetível, a rádio, com o advento da Internet, pode redefinir-se. A introdução de sistemas multimédia vem alterar a natureza da rádio, podendo transformá-la de tal forma que nos obrigue a reequacionar o conceito, questionando a validade da definição do que é a rádio e a sua comunicação (...) (pag1). O conceito de rádio na Internet está ainda por definir, mas uma rádio com texto e vídeo, foge ao modelo tradicional, actualizando um formato com cerca de oitenta anosde existência e fornecendo ao utilizador, que é também o ouvinte, um amplo conjunto de potencialidades, que até aqui seriam impensáveis. (2) (...) A rádio afasta-se do seu conceito original e assume uma configuração multimédia que só a Internet pode oferecer. A convergência das tecnologias instaura novos formatos para velhos conteúdos, e obriga ao progressivo desenvolvimento do sistema de comunicações. Num futuro próximo, a rádio na Internet poderá ser banalizada a partir do momento em que o sistema digital se generalizar. A inovação mais recente, o sistema digital de radiodifusão (DAB – Digital Audio Broadcasting), abre perspectivas até aqui nunca pensadas para a rádio, pela flexibilidade de um sistema inovador, cujos limites ainda não são conhecidos. (pag7)»
fonte: Paula Cordeiro, «Rádio e Internet: novas perspectivas para um velho meio», Universidade do ALgarve, 2004
«A emissão digital traduz uma ligação ao multimédia, favorecendo a interactividade, ao mesmo tempo que faz desenvolver uma nova linguagem, pela incorporação de novos elementos à sua estrutura discursiva e potencia a criação de novos conteúdos para a mensagem radiofónica. Em paralelo, o esquema de recepção acompanha esta evolução, num novo modelo que transforma o ouvinte num utilizador e favorece a fragmentação das audiências em função dos seus interesses específicos. A Internet veio modificar a forma da recepção radiofónica, transformando o conceito de receptor noutro que se aproxima mais da noção de usuário, pela forma como o ouvinte/utilizador toma uma atitude activa de pesquisa e consumo dos conteúdos.» (Cordeiro, Paula, «A rádio de modelo multimediático e os jovens» in http://bocc.ubi.pt/pag/cordeiro-paula-radio-modelo-multimediatico.pdf (pág. 2)
«(...) Do You know what HD or High Definition Radio is or what it does? - this question in syntactically incorrect. The fact is, the "HD" in "HD Radio" doesn't stand for "high-definition" as it's television brethren does. As Peter Ferrera, president and CEO of the HD Digital Radio Alliance said, "Quite honestly, it [HD Radio] doesn't stand for anything. The concept was somewhat of a steal from HD television, where viewers know it means better quality"»
fonte: «Study: HD Radio Sales Estimate Reduced», Orbicast, 18/01/07
«Music Choice, a provider of cable and satellite television-based audio and video content, recently counted its 600 millionth on-demand order. The accomplishment follows a heavy push into on-demand content by Music Choice, a blitz that recently included a major deal with Time Warner Cable. Damon Williams, a top programming executive at Music Choice, credited the accomplishment to "an extensive mix of music videos from established and emerging artists," as well as a programming focus that includes "original shows and exclusive performances". Music Choice is a joint venture involving Microsoft, Motorola, Sony, EMI Music, Comcast, Cox Communications and Time Warner Cable. Original programming is an important part of the on-demand mix for Music Choice. That includes series like Artist of the Month, which features an up-close look at chart-topping artists, and Certified, a show that allows users to vote for their favorite artists. The MTV-style showcases are designed to engage younger audiences, most of whom are comfortable with on-demand formats. Meanwhile, the Music Choice accomplishment is part of a much larger wave in on-demand programming, one that is completely transforming the passive television viewing experience. The Music Choice tally was certified by Rentrak, an independent data-tracking company.»
fonte: Music Choice Boasts 600 Million On-Demand Requests, Digital Music New, 18/01/07
Quem disse que tinha chegado o declínio do iPOd?
«Apple announced another record breaking quarter, ended Dec. 30, resulting from “very strong” sales of iPods and “robust” sales of Macs, the company said. Revenue hit $7.12 billion, growing 24 percent from the quarter a year ago, and net income hit $1 billion, up 78 percent. Sales of iPods for the quarter were 21.1 million, marking a 50 percent increase over the quarter a year ago, despite warnings from analysts that the market growth for MP3 players will slow over the next few years, down to about 10 percent annually. In addition, Apple said it maintained its high market share, achieving 72 percent share in the United States in December, according to NPD Techworld figures. (...) Music revenue fueled by iTunes sales was up 29 percent. iTunes now accounts for 85 percent of songs downloaded and purchased in the United States, Apple said, and sales of iTunes gift cards doubled over the holidays. (...) Apple chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer called demand for the iPod “extraordinary” and said all three iPod models “did exceptionally well,” including the new Shuffle which shipped in October. Oppenheimer also noted that unlike last year, iPod supply kept up with demand over the holidays, which helped boost sales.»
fonte: «Apple Posts Record Quarter, Sells 21.1 Million iPods», By Amy Gilroy -- TWICE, 1/18/2007
«The good news is that more and more terrestrial operators are providing streams of their AM and FM signals. A recent J.P. Morgan analysis shows that broadcast stations are capturing a considerably larger share of overall Internet streaming. It suggests that more than 20% is comprised of radio streams from CBS and Clear Channel stations. Of all terrestrial broadcast streams, Clear Channel dominates 45% of this activity. On the one hand, this is good news because Internet audio is the way that AM/FM stations will find their way onto computers, and more importantly, phones, and Wi-Fi in vehicles. But the "meteor" side of the story is that broadcasters won't get full ratings credit for their streaming activity in Arbitron. That's because most stations' streams aren't true simulcasts of their terrestrial signals because broadcast commercials cannot be carried on the streams. Union/talent fees are at the center of this problem, necessitating stations to "fill" commercial clusters with all sorts of superfluous material (mostly unlistenable and clumsy, by the way). The bottom line is that sometime in 2007, Arbitron will very likely start reporting non-terrestrial listening (satellite, streaming, etc.), and a radio station's Internet stream will have to be listed separately. It's not an "Arbitron thing," it's the way it has to be done in order for advertisers to truly get what they're paying for.»
fonte: «It's A Meteor!!!», Jacobs Blog, 16/01/07
«Sales of digitally distributed music rose about 80 percent worldwide in 2006 but failed to make up for falling sales of compact discs, a trade group said Wednesday. The record industry generated nearly $2 billion in revenue from online and mobile device sales last year, up from $1.1 billion in 2005, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. But the pace of growth slowed from 2005, when digital sales tripled. John Kennedy, chief executive of the group, which is based in London, stuck with a previous forecast that digital sales would make up 25 percent of the industry’s revenue by 2010. But his prediction a year ago that digital sales would cover the decline in CD sales in 2006 fell slightly short. Overall music revenue probably declined by about 3 percent last year, he said. “This is a market combining evolution and revolution, where the learning curve is changing direction on a regular basis,” Mr. Kennedy said»
fonte: New York Times online, «Digital Music Up 80% but Shy of Lost Revenue», ERIC PFANNER, January 18, 2007
«(...) is this the year that HD Radio will take off in the United States? Because the U.S. radio spectrum is crowded and certain parts of it are reserved for the military, HD Radio piggybacks digital signals onto existing analog AM or FM signals rather than transmitting them over a different part of the spectrum, as is the case in the United Kingdom. But in both countries, digital radio technology delivers better sound quality than analog radio, and offers more variety and a host of special features. And, unlike satellite radio, there are no subscription fees, only the cost of buying a digital receiver. In the United Kingdom, more than 4.7 million digital radios have been sold since 1999. Listeners browse station listings in an electronic program guide, pause and rewind content as it's broadcast, bookmark specific programs or songs, and record them using postage-stamp-size memory cards. And starting in May, they can buy songs as they hear them on the radio, downloading them to computers, digital receivers or cell phones. "Consumers are no longer interested in a box that spits out content on a certain schedule," says Simon Cole, CEO of UBC Media, a U.K. company that provides technology services to radio stations. "Digital radio is delivering features that excite listeners." But in the United States? Not so much. Slightly more than 1,000 U.S. stations now broadcast in HD Radio, according to iBiquity Digital, the company that created the technology behind digital radio in the United States. But none yet offer the features available in the United Kingdom. Instead, they use the additional frequencies HD Radio technology provides to offer new channels of content called "multicasts." Top 40 station WNKS, for example, simulcasts its main analog signal on one of its HD Radio frequencies, and multicasts a Christian format on the other. "Multicasting is HD Radio's initial value proposition, but it's just a first step," says iBiquity CEO Bob Struble. Struble envisions HD Radio eventually delivering scrolling-text news and traffic updates, integrating with car navigation systems, and offering on-demand song downloads. And the new partnership between Clear Channel and Microsoft will create a national data service called MSN Direct HD that delivers localized, personalized content to home and car HD Radio receivers. HD Radio receiver sales reached the "low hundred thousands" in 2006, a significant jump from 2005, but miniscule next to XM's and Sirius' more than 13.5 million satellite radio subscribers. Part of the reason is political. While the U.K. government -- which controls much of the country's broadcasting industry -- was able to influence a national shift to digital, for-profit U.S. broadcasters were hesitant to embrace the unproven and expensive technology until satellite radio emerged as a competitive threat. (IBiquity estimates it costs $80,000 to $100,000 to upgrade a radio station to HD Radio.) (...) Cole has watched digital radio take off in the United Kingdom, and believes it's only a matter of time before the same thing happens in the United States. "Three years ago I walked into (London department store) John Lewis and watched consumers completely ignore the tiny selection of digital radios for sale," he recalls. "This year I walked in, and couldn't find an analog radio. Digital was all they offered."»
fonte: Wired News, «Will Digital Radio Boom in U.S.?», Dave Demerjian
Mas os estudos dizem que o interesse cresce:
«In June 2006, Bridge Ratings conducted a study of radio consumers to gauge their awareness of, and interest in. HD Radio. At that time, 62% of the sample were aware of the term "HD Radio." In their just-released study, that number has increased to 72%.
Awareness of the new, HD medium has increased significantly in all quadrants. The overall number is higher when the month of December only is taken into consideration when 80% of those questioned had heard of HD Radio. A positive sign that the industry's marketing efforts to raise awareness have worked. (...) Conclusions: Improved product reviews of HD radio will aid positive brand awareness and interest, while the marketing of HD Radio by the radio industry must greatly improved. While overall awareness of the term "HD Radio" has increased in the last year, there is considerable confusion, misinformation or total lack of understanding as to what HD Radio is or what its benefits are to the consumer. This, they feel, is one of the greatest challenges to the growth of HD Radio.
The complete study results are available at: http://www.bridgeratings.com under “What’s New.”» (fonte: Radio Ink, «Bridge Ratings Updates HD Radio Projections», 18/01/07)
«[São Francisco] vai distribuir gratuitamente acesso sem fios à internet em todo o seu território. Mais de 777 mil habitantes terão um acesso continuidado e gratuito, onde quer que estejam na cidade, em casa ou na rua. A iniciativa -inédita não só nos EUA mas em todo o mundo - é da câmara municipal, que estás prestes a fechar as negociações com a Earth Link, a empresa que fará a distribuição do acesso (...)» (MIguel Martins, EXpresso/Única, 13/01/07 pag 92)
«Every so often someone in the radio industry trots out a study which says iPods really aren't that threatening to the radio industry's long-term health and welfare. "Folks get tired of maintaining them," they will say. "They're just a new form of Walkman," say others. (...)The fact is this: For younger consumers in particular, the iPod is no more difficult to use than a radio. Our research has shown this definitively. And while folks may occasionally tire of maintaining an iPod they will also tire of their radio stations. But tiring of something and abandoning it are two different things. Two billion downloads can't be all wrong. (...) The radio industry will have to come to terms with a future where your favorite radio station may always be on your hip and may always plays the songs you program yourself.This general trend, more than anything else, is why the growth of satellite radio will not be about music and why the distribution of HD radio will be forever hampered.If you want more music choice, the solution is in the palm of a ten-year-old.While satellite radio seems to inherently understand this, the powers-that-be in HD radio seem to have no such clue. And that's too bad, because facing reality is how you make the most of reality.(...)»
Mark Ramsey, hear2.0, «iPods don't matter to radio?», 16/01/07
«Several U.S. senators have reintroduced legislation that would require some digital and streaming Internet radio stations to use digital-rights management technology if they acquire licenses through U.S. government-mandated copyright plans. According to opponents, the legislation would jeopardize TiVo-like audio recording devices, such as the Inno from XM Radio, as well as businesses like Live365 and ShoutCast, which stream radio over the Internet using the open MP3 format.
The Perform Act, which died in Congress last year, was reintroduced Jan. 11 by Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Joseph Biden, D-Del., and Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn. It requires satellite, cable TV, and Internet broadcasters to pay "fair market value" for digital music performances. It also requires "the use of readily available and cost-effective technology to prevent music theft," according to a press release from Feinstein's office. The law would apply to stations that license music from the government program created by Section 114 of the U.S Copyright Act.
It specifically allows some recording and time-shifting of radio. Consumers could record music by program, channel, or time period. "For example, if a listener chooses to automatically record a news station every morning at 9:00; a jazz station every afternoon at 2:00; a blues station every Friday at 3:00; and a talk radio show every Saturday at 4:00; that would be allowable. In addition, that listener could then use their recording device to move these programs so that all programs of the same genre are back to back," according to Feinstein. "What a listener cannot do is set a recording device to find all the Frank Sinatra songs being played on the radio-service and only record those songs," according to Feinstein. The RIAA welcomed the law. "Under the current system, satellite radio has been allowed to morph into a digital distribution service-- shorting the creators of music, displacing licensed sales, and threatening the integrity of the digital music marketplace in the process. We love satellite radio. But this is simply no way to do business. It's in everyone's best interest to ensure a marketplace where fair competition can thrive," the association said in a statement.
fonte: «U.S. Reintroduces Law Requiring DRM For Digital, Internet Radio». By Mitch Wagner, InformationWeek ,Jan 16, 2007 05:22 PM
Reacções:
«But the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and Public Knowledge oppose the legislation. The bill would be a "backdoor assault on your right to record off the radio," the EFF said. The Perform Act would prohibit digital and satellite radio services from offering TiVO-like recording options, the EFF said. The Perform Act would prohibit streaming music formats that don't use DRM, such as the MP3 format used on several Internet radio services, including Apple Inc.'s iTunes streaming radio stations, said Fred von Lohmann, senior intellectual property lawyer at EFF. The bill sets a "bad precedent for our copyright laws," von Lohmann wrote on the EFF blog. "Over the course of a century, our copyright laws have responded to changing technology not with government technology mandates, but rather by letting new business models evolve ..." Gigi Sohn, president of Public Knowledge, said she agrees with parts of the bill that streamline music licensing fees. But the DRM provisions place limits on consumers, she said. "This bill looks to the past rather than to the future by limiting the ability of consumers to use material to which they have subscribed and by limiting future innovations in electronics," Sohn wrote on the Public Knowledge Web site. "It confuses a radio service, in which a consumer can only record what is currently being played, with a download service, in which consumers pick the material to download.» (fonte: Computerworld, «Groups criticize proposed music DRM legislation», 18/01/07)
«My family has grown so accustomed to listening to our MP3 players, either as a family or individually, when we get in the car, we rarely turn on the radio. Heck, even the CD player is getting only occasional use (none at all from me, actually). Seems that Sanjay from The Simply Audio blog is having the same experience. An excerpt from the post:
Out of sheer boredom I started looking at my instrument panel, and lo and behold, there’s a radio! I never noticed it before. Both FM AND AM! I bet I paid extra for that. I remember something called talk radio, so I dialed in to the top station on the AM dial (I mean touchscreen pushbutton thingy, not dial) and started happily listening to newsradio. But I must have done something wrong because the sound quality was really bad and I swear they kept repeating the same news stories over and over.»
fonte: «Who needs the radio?»
«A partir de manhã, qualquer canção descarregada legalmente da Internet pode chegar ao primeiro lugar do top britânico de singles. Até agora, apenas canções vendidas fisicamente em CD nas lojas podiam aceder ao top - os downloads estavam incluídos mas até uma semana antes de o CD chegar ao mercado e, sem limite, duas semanas depois de o mesmo CD desaparecer das lojas. Com esta mudança no top britânico, criado há 54 anos, amanhã pode aparecer no primeiro lugar qualquer canção que tenha sido vendida nas lojas ou online. Segundo a empresa Official UK Charts Company (OCC), esta novidade vai reflectir melhor que música estão os britânicos a comprar, o que quer também dizer, segundo a OCC, que canções antigas, canções de artistas desconhecidos ou canções não publicadas em álbuns podem chegar ao top. "Literalmente, qualquer canção pode ser um sucesso - desde que venda o suficiente", diz Steve Redmond, director da OCC. Crazy, de Gnarls Barkley, fez história em 2006, quando se tornou a primeira canção a chegar a número um no Reino Unido graças apenas às vendas digitais.»
fonte: «"Downloads" forçam mudanças no top britânico», Público, 6/01/07