After being declared ineligible for inclusion on the UK sales charts, the new single from rocker David Bowie has been approved by the folks at the Official Charts Company.
Since Bowie’s new song “Where Are We Now?” was being given away for free to anyone who pre-ordered the musician’s new album, it was determined that the tune was ineligible for the sales charts. According to the Guardian , this decision has since been reversed.
The company explained that only songs that are purchased by customers are eligible for the UK sales charts. However, officials said they would separate free downloads from paid downloads. By doing this, the new David Bowie tune can now compete with other songs that are currently up for grabs.
A spokesperson said at the time:
“Owing to chart rules which are agreed in partnership with UK record companies and retailers, data relating to the David Bowie single Where Are We Now? cannot currently be counted towards the official singles charts, as the release is linked to an album pre-order promotion and it is not possible to distinguish album sales from track sales from the retail data received.
“Should it become possible in the future for regular track sales to be distinguished from album pre-order incentive purchases, then these sales can be counted towards the chart.”
The Independent reports that David Bowie’s new single is doing quite well since being released on Tuesday. In addition to the song riding high on the iTunes singles charts, Bowie’s new album sits at the top of the album sales chart thanks to those who have pre-ordered the forthcoming collection of tunes.
The new video for “Where Are We Now?” has been embedded below.
Are you a fan of David Bowie? Are you planning to pick up his new album when it drops later this year?