India global hotspot for Michael Jackson downloads

London, Aug 26 (IANS) Pop legend Michael Jackson is the most downloaded artist of all time on Ovi Music and "Beat It" is his most downloaded track across 36 countries. India accounts for 26 percent of all Jacko downloads.

With birthday tributes to the King of Pop scheduled for Sunday, Ovi Music download data reveals that Jackson still tops other stars as the most popular solo star, ahead of Lady Gaga, Elvis, Jay Chou, the Black Eyed Peas and Rihanna, said a press statement.

He is especially popular in India where over 26 percent of Jackson track downloads occur, followed by the UK, Germany, Netherlands and Finland.

"Michael Jackson has always been a pop music legend. But the anniversary of his death and upcoming birthday celebrations seem to have revived Jackson fever as fans rediscover his songs - making him the most popular solo artist of all time," said Ovi musicologist Geoff Roberts.

After "Beat It", Jacko's next most popular tracks are "Billie Jean" and "Thriller". The Ovi data reveals that "This Is It" is downloaded almost twice as much as any of his other albums.

There are 533 Jackson songs available in the Ovi Music catalogue.