"The Essential Michael Jackson," a career-spanning collection of must-have Michael Jackson tracks, hit No. 1 on the Billboard Top Pop Catalog albums chart while rocketing its way into the Top 10 top-selling albums chart at the iTunes Store, America's No. 1 music store, following an episode of "American Idol" (aired March 10), featuring this year's AI finalists performing their own versions of songs from the classic Michael Jackson catalog.

Response to the Michael Jackson song exposure on "American Idol" proved overwhelmingly positive in the digital realm, where "The Essential Michael Jackson" collection bulleted its way into the Top 10 on the iTunes top-selling albums chart as well as SoundScan's Top 10 Digital albums chart.

Along with the surging renewal of interest in "The Essential Michael Jackson," sales for other Michael Jackson albums available digitally more than tripled the same week.

Individual Michael Jackson digital track sales soared during the same period as well with American Idol crowdpleaser "P.Y.T." leading the pack with "Thriller" and "Billie Jean" (two classics not performed on the AI Michael Jackson show) following closely, proving the ongoing viability of the Michael Jackson catalog.

Earlier this month, Michael Jackson announced that he would perform his first series of full concerts in more than a decade, a residency at London's 02 Arena, the largest indoor concert facility in Europe.

(China.org.cn March 25, 2009)