Album Sales down 21% from a year ago

According to the entertainment trade mag Variety, Josh Groban is one of few people in the music industry singing a happy jolly tune this holiday season.

While Groban's "Noel" has crossed 3.5 million in sales to become the top-selling disc of the year (and the #1 album for the past 5 weeks), there's no denying this music trend: overall music sales during the Christmas shopping season were down an astounding 21% from last year.

From the week of Thanksgiving up through the day before Christmas Eve, Soundscan sales tracking report 83.9 million albums were sold, a decrease of 21.38 million from 2006's 105.28 million.

The week leading up to Christmas saw sales rise a 42% over the previous week. But when the week's sales of 25.57 million are compared to the same week from '06, they represent an 18% drop.

Can online music gift cards for online music close some of that lost sales gap?

Is the CD part of the music industry on its way to becoming only a $20 billion industry even earlier than predicted last year?

Labels: 2007, Album sales, Billboard, Grobin, Music trend