BBC Asian Network to launch

London (ANI): BBC Asian Network will soon launch the first official for Asian music. The Official Charts Company (OCC), which publishes the mainstream UK top 40, will also compile the new chart. "We have long recognised that establishing an industry recognised official chart format is an important building block in the infrastructure of British Asian music," the BBC News quoted BBC Asian Network'' head of music, Mark Strippel, as saying.

British Asian or South Asian musicians, including Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Sri Lankan, origin will be recognized in the chart. The OCC using UK sales data provided from a panel of more than 30 digital retail stores, including iTunes, Amazon and Napster, will enlist a full top 40 which will be published online.

Billy Grant from the Association of Independent Music, thinks it would 'undoubtedly create more exposure' for Asian artists. Also, DJ Bobby Friction said: "Having an official chart is going to make a massive difference to Asian artists in the UK because, until now, they've not really understood where they stand in the grand scheme of things. "They''ve had record shops and labels telling them of good sales but they''ve not been able to quantify them."