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Indie chart to be relaunched
By CMU Editorial | Published on Monday 15 June 2009
They’re relaunching the independent music chart, which is exciting, I reckon. The relaunch will see the way the chart is compiled changed.
Whether a record id allowed to appear in the indie chart has traditionally been based on distribution criteria rather than the status of the actual label which released it. So any record distributed by an independent distributor is eligible, any distributed by a major label owned distributor is not. Which was all well and good when the majors had their own distribution divisions, and indie labels always used a Pinnacle or Cargo or PIAS to distribute their records and CDs, but less so now that some of the majors outsource their distribution to what are technically speaking independent companies, and some indies use the distribution services of the majors.
So, instead of all that, moving forward, whether or not records can appear in the independent chart will be based on label rather than distributor, using the Association Of Independent Music’s definition of whether or not a label is indie – that it is not more than 50% owned by a major music company.
It’s hoped the revamp will give the indie label chart a new lease of life. There will also be a new ‘indie breakers’ chart, which will only feature indie label artists who have not previously appeared in the main singles or album chart, providing a platform for new talent.
Confirming the new look independent music chart, Official Charts Company boss Martin Talbot told CMU: “The independent record sector has changed beyond recognition since these charts were initially borne out of the punk/new wave surge of the late Seventies and early Eighties. This new set of rules is designed to address those changes”.
