THE NIN HOTLINE

Tunecore, an online music distribution company, is throwing down the gauntlet with the RIAA and is announcing a series of awards based on online units sold and are broken down into three categories: Black (500,000 copies sold), Silver (250,000) & White (100,000), and are very similar to the RIAA's Platinum (1,000,000 units sold) & Gold (500,000).

Along with the announcement of the awards came the announcement of the recipients, and while this may not be a surprise to us, it's sure to kick the record labels in the ass: Nine Inch Nails' Ghosts I-IV is the first and only album to win the Black Tunecore award, while other new and veteran artists fill the Silver & White lists. Check out this article from Newsday for more details.