Album Sales Drop Again...

"Album sales dropped for a seventh consecutive year, but a dramatic increase in the sale of digital tracks helped keep the music industry afloat in 2006.

588.2 million album units sold last year, a 4.9% drop, while 581.9 million digital tracks were purchased by consumers -- a 65% increase from 2005's 352.7 million sold. Nielsen SoundScan, which released the figures Thursday, counts a block of 10 tracks sold as an album.

But the music industry continues to live with a double-edged sword. While hits were created -- Daniel Powter's "Bad Day," Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy," Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie" -- no top-selling artists generated follow-ups that did significant business. Disney's "High School Musical" soundtrack was the year's top seller at 3.7 million units, but in the 15 years SoundScan has been keeping sales figures, it is the lowest total for the year's chart-topper. Good news: Sales were spread around many different artists. Bad news: The bar for a "hit" is reduced and in many cases the return on investment for a label is smaller"-Variety