Universal’s long tail experiment with otherwise “out-of-print” tracks appears to be working. The first phase of its digital back catalog rollout making 3,000 tracks available on iTunes in February has since generated 250,000 downloads, though sales figures weren’t released. Big Country’s “Steeltown” was the most popular album and Nana Mouskouri’s Christmas album “Les Plus Beaux Noels du Monde” sold in almost all of the 20 countries in the trial. The second tranche will be released late next month including The Orb and Maurice Chevalier, though not together.
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