The NPD is to begin tracking digital game sales in the US.

MCV reports that digital sales data will initially only be tracked by publishers who have signed up to the service, including EA, Capcom, Activision Blizzard, Square Enix, Take-Two, Ubisoft, Deep Silver and Warner Bros., although it is looking to extend its reach with additional companies in future.

Data will only be collected from PSN, Xbox Live and select PC services, too, MCV says, meaning that sales from Uplay and Battle.net will not be tracked. There will, however, be the possibility to track the sale of DLC in the future, too, NPD's executive director Liam Callahan suggests.

"As has been experienced across a wide variety of industries, digital has made a big impact on the overall gaming market, and we've risen to meet the demand for a reporting mechanism that tracks those sales in a timely and accurate way," said Joanne Hageman, the head of NPD's Toys and Games division.

"With the participation and support of leading publishers - whose cooperation makes this possible - we are excited to launch an industry-first service that addresses a long-standing need."

Earlier this year, SuperData announced that it had partnered with GfK Chart-Track to launch a combined physical/digital chart in the UK.

Source: mcvuk.com