NPD planning to track sales of downloadable games
by Richard Mitchell 
on Sep 21st 2009 4:40PM
Speaking to
MCV, the
NPD has announced plans to track sales of downloadable games. The group aims to track sales of console, PC and mobile phone games. According to NPD's director of corporate marketing David Riley, download charts are needed in order to "provide a no-nonsense view of what's happening on the publisher level, keeping away from the spin, and in some cases, misleading information that often appears on the internet."
It's certainly a valid goal, but we at the 'Stiq have only one question: How? There are many, many online outlets in the business of selling downloadable titles, ranging from small, independent sites to
Steam to the digital arms of giants like
GameStop and
Amazon. Still, if the NPD can wrangle data from enough distributors, and clearly identify those participating, it could easily prove to be a valuable metric for analysts .. and a terrifying one for brick-and-mortar retailers.
[Original image:
Arthur Chapman]
