Los Angeles - Global recorded music sales were down for the seventh consecutive year in 2006, when CD and physical sales fell 11% to $17.5 billion, while digital music sales climbed 85% to $2.1 billion, according to data from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), an international record label trade group.

"We hoped that the decline in physical sales would be offset by the increase in digital sales, giving us the 'holy grail.' But while digital sales have grown as expected, physical sales have fallen by more than expected," IFPI chairman and CEO John Kennedy told Billboard.

Overall, sales of online and mobile music downloads worldwide were up 85% in 2006, to $2.1 billion, and now account for 11% of the global market.

The IFPI estimated that 20 billion illegal music files were downloaded last year, while 795 million song downloads were sold from digital retailers.

Meanwhile, U.S. sales of digital singles and albums have grown 60% and 49%, respectively, in the first half of 2007, according to figures from Nielsen SoundScan.

Digital album sales so far this year total 23.5 million units, while over 417 million individual tracks have been sold.

Wired News noted that Gwen Stefani's song "Sweet Escape" sold more digital copies (1.8 million) than the top-selling physical CD (1.7 million), the debut album from Chris Daughtry of "American Idol."

Related Links:
http://www.ifpi.org/content/section_news/20070702.html

http://tinyurl.com/ynlaor (Billboard)

http://tinyurl.com/2vgeqh (Reuters)

http://blog.wired.com/music/2007/07/digital-music-s.html