Does anyone know if the CD's given out with the paper, and at his concerts will count towards sales,meaning that the album is eligable to chart?

Quick answer to that is no, Uk chart rules are that CD giveaways do not count as sales therefore it won't chart unless people go and buy it from a shop.

What about the CD given away at the London concerts? Will they count? I know they closed that loophole when he did it for the Musicology tour, but I was thinking different chart, different rules?

Also, doesn't the Network Radio chart in the UK include airplay figures? That probably only applies to singles, but just a thought!
[Edited 7/4/07 8:09am]

Newspaper and concert giveaways do not count toward the charts. They closed the loophole after Musicology (which peaked at #2 in the US).

The concert giveaways only worked in the US at the time - loophole now closed.

This would never have been eligible in the UK so the O2 giveaways and the MoS giveaways will be just that and totally chart ineligible.

With that activity no Retailer will be stocking PE so it wont chart in the UK, no way no how

The UK album chart is compiled purely from sales.
Any kind of giveaways are automatically ineligible,
so Planet Earth cannot chart in the UK.

the rules for the UK charts are so tight and archaic that it's hard to believe any album is eligible for charting at this point

...it may however, register on the richter scale.

Prince doesn't seem to care to make the charts.

GiGi319 said:

And why should he?

don't forget! "#1 at the bank!"

GiGi319 said:

Then why sign with a major label?

From what i remember the cds only count if they were Included with the price of the tickets
And 3121.com clearley states That the CDs are included in the price of the tickets.

Im not saying they have to count..but my guess is that they might

mplsmike said:

this is a rule for the US, only. and the rule is that the CD can't be included automatically in the price of the ticket. it has to be an option that the user can add on to the price of the ticket, for an additional fee, or it doens't count as a sale.

giveaways in the UK (and really any other promotional gimmick - like putting a sheet of stickers in with the album) do not count toward the charts.

i didnt know the rule counted 4 the US only
Any ways... Future Baby Mama 192 kbps

mplsmike said:

the rule is for the US Billboard charts. I don't know what the rule for the UK charts is, but I can guarantee you that none of the copies in the UK, now that it's not being sold at retail outlets, will count toward the charts. The chart keepers there are nazis for that sort of thing.

Prince will always be # 1 in my book

Merritt said:

That's not fair, because some people who would have bought it won't because they given it rather than buying it. OK , well it is and isn't fair.
[Edited 7/4/07 17:28pm]
[Edited 7/4/07 17:29pm]

ReginaCarman said:

It's completely fair. Prince *CHOSE* to give it away... He's more concerned about being #1 at the bank than #1 on the charts.

ReginaCarman said:

it is no longer being released to stores for people in the UK to buy. you can only get it with the newspaper, the concert ticket, or probably the download outlets.

Cloudbuster said:

Of course, Prince cares about the charts. Why else would he give albums away during the Musicology tour? It was to boost his sales and the further his chart position. When he was not giving away albums during his tour, his position on the chart dropped like a rock. I agree if Prince didn't care about the charts, then he wouldn't sign with a major label to release his album and sign with Verizon to promote his single. Let's be realistic, everyone cares about chart postions even if they pretend not to. Some artists do that so that if their album doesn't do well, then fans can say that he or she didn't care anyway.
[Edited 7/4/07 22:24pm]

jtfolden said:

How can a person be #1 at the bank(after signing with a major label) if they are not #1 (or close to #1) on the charts? In order to be #1 at the bank an album has to sell. IF it is at the top or near the top of the charts, then it is selling AND making money. Just trying to think logically.

skyecute said:

he got paid $1m to put it out for free, which is more than he would have made selling it, apparently.

skyecute said:

Charts have nothing to do with how much an artist actually earns. Your complaint that it wasn't fair not to count it makes no logical sense here as he wouldn't have earned more money just by having the freebies appear on a chart.

In this particular case, Prince was paid $1mil+ to have his new album featured in the paper. That money is free and clear with virtually no effort on his part. That's a hell of a lot more lucrative than having to convince people to go into a shop and buy it (or not).