iTunes #1 Music Retailer for the First Half of 2008

Apple's been crowing about this since April, and the NPD Group has confirmed, that not just for a single month, but for the first six months of 2008, the iTunes Store is ranked number one in retail music sales (based on purchases of CDs and music downloads).

The top 5 retailers are as follows:

1. iTunes
2. Wal-Mart (Walmart, Walmart.com, Walmart Music Downloads)
3. Best Buy (Best Buy, Bestbuy.com, Best Buy Digital Music Store)
4. Amazon (Amazon.com, AmazonMP3.com)
5. Target (Target and Target.com)

Amazon.com snagged 4th place away from Target based on the following, according to the report: first, online CD sales have seen less erosion than CD sales at brick-and-mortar stores; and second, Amazon MP3 (Amazon's iTunes competitor) launched last year, with DRM-free MP3s from all four major labels.

Russ Crupnick, entertainment industry analyst for The NPD Group said:

"We expect Apple will consolidate its lead in the retail music market, as CD sales continue to slow. Amazon’s CD buyers tend to be older, so they haven’t abandoned the CD format to the extent seen in the average music buyer. Plus Amazon’s successful introduction of its digital download store will help the company improve its position in the future.

I've been wondering if Amazon MP3 could start making serious inroads, and it sounds like NPD believes, as I do, that while it's not likely to take #1 away from iTunes, Amazon MP3 might enter the top three music retailers soon.