Linkage: January 5, 2008

- According to Nielsen SoundScan figures released Thursday, physical album sales in the U.S. plunged 9.5 percent last year from 2006 while digital downloads were up 45 percent to 844.2 million, compared with 588.2 million in 2006, with digital album sales accounting for 10 percent of total album purchases.

- Ars Technica is reporting that the European Union wants to standardize content distribution as well as DRM (Digital Rights Management) standards. Under the proposals, the EU would regulate the market by creating a single, European market for online music, including films and video games.

- FriskyRadio is set lo launch a record label, friskyRecords. Frisky founder Faisal Sultan writes on his personal blog:

"friskyRecords will be an offshoot of friskyRadio and I hope to release only the best progressive house and electronic dance music (EDM) on it. After months of being pretty tight lipped about it I will finally start to talk openly about it here in the coming days and weeks as we come close to our first release."

- Beatportal has a short interview with London-based DJ, producer and Crosstown Rebels label honcho Damian Lazarus.