Who will be the First Official Download #1?

[Admin]

The show is on Radio 1 tonight at 6pm! I must try and listen in...and if some kind soul could transcribe the top 20 to the chart forum please
Here is what the sun thinks will happen...

"September 1st marks the release of the first Official Download Chart — and it sounds the death knell of the Top 40.
From tonight this new chart will collate all the tracks downloaded on to PCs from the big three legal online sites — Napster, Apple iStore and OD2.
The rules for the download chart are a little different to the official Top 40 singles chart put out by Radio 1 every Sunday.
Any track ever recorded is eligible, it doesn’t have to have been released the previous week. So an obscure song by BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN could as easily get top spot as a new single by BRIAN McFADDEN.
Even so, it is Brian’s old band WESTLIFE who look like getting the first No1, with a re-release of Flying Without Wings.
MUSE, THE STREETS and BLAZIN’ SQUAD are in the running too."
Credit: The Sun

I saw a top 10/20 in the Mirror the other day and that had Maroon 5 at #1, but maybe that was last week's chart?
It would be interesting to know how many downloads are needed for a #1, and whether they will count as one sale, or a half of a sale when added to the singles chart...Could see climbers enter the top 75 once more, and that to me has got to be good!

[ManicKangaroo]

The problem with adding downloads to the chart is that the potential for rigging the chart will be greatly increased unless there is someone monitoring the download patterns

It is much easier to download a whole load of copies of a track than it is to buy a whole load of singles without being caught.

Plus, as has been stated, any track is eligible for the download chart, if that applies when they incorporate it into the main chart we could see some very strange new entries into the chart (unless the OCC makes even more exclusion rules)

[Dee]

It'll be interesting to see this chart.

[Admin]

ManicKangaroo said:

The problem with adding downloads to the chart is that the potential for rigging the chart will be greatly increased unless there is someone monitoring the download patterns

It is much easier to download a whole load of copies of a track than it is to buy a whole load of singles without being caught.

Plus, as has been stated, any track is eligible for the download chart, if that applies when they incorporate it into the main chart we could see some very strange new entries into the chart (unless the OCC makes even more exclusion rules)

Downloads will have to be monitored I guess, I want em incorporated if only to allow a song to enter at say, #43 on download sales and then climb to #7 on sales the following week, just would add a bit of spice to the charts.
As far as I know from now til the end of the year is teh time they are going to monitor it and come up with some solutions to any hiyches and glitches they encounter...

[dandyhighwayman]

Well what an anticlimax this was when it was on!

[ManicKangaroo]

andy said:

I want em incorporated if only to allow a song to enter at say, #43 on download sales and then climb to #7 on sales the following week, just would add a bit of spice to the charts.

Can't see that happening

Until we see the figures for downloads and know how they are gonna be incorporated we can't judge fully.
My expectation is that the figures will be too small to make much of a difference. The only tracks which could make any decent impact will be download exclusives. Then you come back to the situation we have with the current singles chart when everyone will download at the earliest opportunity and produce the usual high first week entry.