Record label boss Korda Marshall has been appointed as chairman of the Official Charts Company, the industry-owned organization that compiles the UK’s official music & video charts and data.
Marshall takes up the role for an initial two-year tenure following a successful 2012 in which the company has celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Official Singles Chart, launched a successful consumer-facing web platform that has already broken 1 million monthly unique users, while the company has posted record turnover and profits.
Marshall replaces Rob Salter, Tesco’s former head of entertainment, who stepped down from his charts role last month. He will chair a 10-person board, which comprises representatives from the company’s two joint venture owners, record labels association BPI and the Entertainment Retailers Association.
Marshall will take on the non-executive position in addition to his role running Infectious Records labels, one of the hottest independent labels in the UK. Across three decades, Marshall has held senior roles at Warner Music, BMG and Mushroom, as well as running Infectious – and has a track record of signing and launching successful acts including Ash, Muse, Gnarls Barkley, Garbage, Temper Trap and the breakthrough act of 2012, Alt-J – who won last year’s Mercury Music Prize and have this week received three Brit Awards nominations.
Marshall says, “The Official Charts Company is a hugely important organisation. It not only provides data, analysis, programming and visibility for artists but is, in many ways, the custodian of our industry's history. It is a real honour to be given a role to play in the evolution and growth of the Official Charts Company and I am looking forward to working with Martin and his excellent team during what is a challenging but also very exciting time for the music industry.”
Official Charts Company managing director Martin Talbot says, “I am delighted to welcome Korda as our new chairman. He is a progressive and experienced entrepreneur with a real vision for the Official Charts, as well as a music man with an unbeatable track record of signing and launching new acts, from commercial pop through to the coolest, most credible acts. He is the perfect person to help us take the next steps on following the excellent contribution of Rob Salter over the past couple of years.”
The Official Charts Company is responsible for the commissioning, marketing, distribution and management of the UK's industry-standard music charts and industry sales data, including key charts such as the UK’s Official Singles Chart, Official Albums Chart and Official Streaming Chart. All of the data is compiled from sales information gathered across all key entertainment channels including all major high street retail chains, independent stores, supermarkets, mail order internet retailers and digital music service providers, a market research sample equating to 99% of the total UK singles market, 98% of the total UK albums market and 90% of the total UK DVD market.
Last year saw the Official Charts Company celebrate 60 Years Of The Official Singles Chart, prompting a range of activity including programming across ITV, BBC4, MTV, The Box, Radio 1, Radio 2, 6Music, as well as coverage across the print and online media.
OfficialCharts.com is the all-new destination site of the UK’s Official Charts, delivering exclusive breaking chart news, video interviews with the week’s Official Number 1 artist, hot new releases and competitions to 1 million of the UK’s biggest chart fans monthly. It provides access to the full Official Singles and Official Albums Chart Top 100, plus official charts for Rock, RnB, Dance, and many more – as well as the ability to search the UK’s historic chart archive, by date, artist, song/album title or keyword.
