UK digital album sales hit 100 million

UK digital album sales have reached 100 million, the Official Charts Company has announced.

UK digital album sales have reached 100 million, the Official Charts Company has announced.

Records began just over six years ago, while it's just two years since digital album sales in the UK hit 50 million.

The 10 biggest-selling digital albums of all time have now all sold more than 250,000 copies online, led by Adele and Ed Sheeran, and followed by Lady Gaga, Kings of Leon and Rihanna.

Lana del Rey's album, Born To Die, is currently the best-selling digital album in 2012.

Digital sales now account for 34% volume of the total album sales market – compared to 1.6% back in 2006 when records began.

Around 64,000 albums were downloaded in that first week back in 2006, while now around 500,000 albums are downloaded a week.

The top-selling album last week was Now That’s What I Call Music! 82, which shifted 45,000 copies online. In the first week that digital album sales were recorded in 2006, the biggest-seller was This New Day by Embrace, with just under 2,000 digital sales.

BPI Chief Executive Geoff Taylor said: "Sales of digital albums are surging ahead as British consumers embrace the convenience, value and choice offered by online services.

"As our athletes compete against the best in the world, British artists have taken the gold and silver positions in the best-selling digital artist albums of all time."

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Some 64,000 albums were downloaded in that week – the weekly average for digital album sales is now almost eight times that at 500,000 downloadsere downloaded in that week – the weekly average for digital album sales is now almost eight times that at 500,000 download

Joe Cox
Content Director

Joe is Content Director for T3 and What Hi-Fi?, having previously been the Global Editor-in-Chief of What Hi-Fi?. He has worked on What Hi-Fi? across the print magazine and website for more than 15 years, writing news, reviews and features on everything from turntables to TVs, headphones to hi-fi separates. He has covered product launch events across the world, from Apple to Technics, Sony and Samsung; reported from CES, the Bristol Show, and Munich High End for many years; and written for sites such as the BBC, Stuff, and the Guardian. In his spare time, he enjoys expanding his vinyl collection and cycling (not at the same time).