Pandora streaming data added to Billboard charts

The world’s leading songs chart, Billboard Hot 100, will add important streaming data from Pandora in an exclusive deal beginning on February 11.

The data will also be incorporated in all of Billboard’s streaming-based charts and Hot 100 formula-based genre rankings. These include the Hot Country Songs, Hot Rock Songs, Hot Christian Songs, Hot Gospel Songs. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, Hot Rap Songs, Hot R&B Songs, Hot Latin Songs and  Hot Dance/Electronic Songs.

The Hot 100 is currently determined by formula blending track sales, radio airplay and streaming, with the data measured by Nielsen Music.

Pandora joins other programmed streaming services such as Napster, Google Radio, Slacker and AOL Radio who contribute to the chart. On-demand services including Spotify, SoundCloud, Apple Music, TIDAL Amazon data is also included, along with on-demand video platforms YouTube and VidZone. 

Pandora represents roughly 10% of radio listening in the US, and according to Billboard, the impact that Pandora’s data has on the positioning of songs in the Hot 100 is quite significant.

When incorporating Pandora into the Hot 100 chart, it positively impacts 35 titles on the Hot 100. Furthermore, nine tracks improve in ranking by five or more places when compared to the chart absent of Pandora data.

Among the list of Pandora-affected tracks includes Rihanna’s Sex With Me, Chill Bill by Rob $tone ft. J Davi$ & Spook, Bebe Rexha’s I Got You and Jason Aldean’s Any Ol’ Barstool. Chill Bill is one of Pandora’s most streamed tracks of the week, seeing an upward movement of more than 10 spots if the relevant data is incorporated into the chart.

Pandora’s data would also influence the Hot 100 chart entrants. Including the data would see Lady Gaga’s Million Reasons enter the chart along with Dancing On My Own by English singer-songwriter Callum Scott, making it his first Hot 100 appearance.