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iTunes cracks top 10 music retailers
Apple's digital download store makes list for first time ever, beating out long-standing retailers like Tower Records, Sam Goody, and Borders.
The world's top digital music download store beat out three traditional music retailers in the recent quarter, the first time a digital store has ranked among the top 10 of music retailers in the US, according to market research firm NPD Group.
For the quarter that ended September 30, Apple's iTunes Music Store ranked seventh among units sold in the US. To create an equivalent between single-heavy iTunes and traditional retailers that mostly sell full albums, NPD counted 12 songs sold as one album sold.
iTunes topped Tower Records, Sam Goody, and Borders in NPD's third-quarter ranking to crack the top 10. iTunes ranked 14th on the list for the same quarter a year ago.
In the report, NPD music and movies industry analyst Russ Crupnick said Apple will likely continue moving up on the list.
"With the growing interest in digital music, forecasts of more iPod demand this holiday, plus the stocking-stuffer appeal of iTunes gift cards, we can expect Apple to increase its share even more by year's end," he said.
Wal-Mart stores remained the top music seller in the US, followed in order by Best Buy, Target, and Amazon.com. For Your Entertainment (FYE) also made a big leap in the quarter, jumping from 10th to fifth place, according to NPD.
Online retailer Amazon.com retained its fourth-place ranking on the list.
Apple said last month that iTunes has sold more than 600 million downloads worldwide.
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