Billboard is expanding chart eligibility to include qualifying Smart Media Albums in their album consumption and sales charts, leveraging Luminate’s updated consumption data, now inclusive of unit sales for this new album format.
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Beginning with the Oct. 2–8, 2026, tracking week, select Smart Media Albums will be eligible for inclusion, reflecting Billboard’s ongoing commitment to recognize new music technologies and ways in which fans are discovering, collecting and engaging with music and artists.
Smart Media Albums are physical products that, once activated, direct consumers to a dedicated app or website where they can unlock album content using technologies such as QR codes, ultrasonic signatures, NFC or similar tools. These products offer access to music and may also include additional limited digital assets within a dedicated digital experience, as well as a specified range of physical assets contained inside the Smart Media Album package.
Examples of digital assets that may be included in a Smart Media Album experience include additional audio or video content, photos, lyrics and liner notes. As for additional physical items packaged within the Smart Media Album, they may include such items as cards, stickers, posters and liner notes.
During the introductory inclusion phase, each eligible Smart Media Album transaction will count as a 0.5 equivalent album unit toward Billboard’s album consumption chart tabulation. The same transaction will count as one full album sale on Billboard’s album sales charts. This initial approach recognizes the format while allowing Billboard to evaluate how this emerging, digitally activated product fits within consumption charts.
Eligible Smart Media Albums must be approved products from a select group of vendors/manufacturers and are limited to two eligible Smart Media versions (UPCs) per album release. The currently approved vendors/manufacturers are: IYK, KiTbetter, Serenade, Totem, WeVerse, Yoto and ZATAP.
“The ways fans experience and collect music are evolving, and Billboard’s charts must evolve as well,” said Silvio Pietroluongo, executive vp of charts and data partnerships at Billboard. “Recognizing eligible Smart Media Albums allows our rankings to be more inclusive of music-focused technologies while preserving the standards and integrity that guide our chart methodology.”
“Luminate’s role is to reflect the full breadth of the music business, including the growing range of channels through which fans access and support artists,” said Glenn Walker, chief data officer at Luminate. “The addition of Smart Media Albums helps ensure that emerging formats and revenue streams are represented accurately in the industry’s data.”
