There’s no denying that sales of music over the internet are on the rise, and iTunes strong position in the market is proof of that. Now, a recent report from market research firm In-Stat says that digital sales will account for 40 percent of all music purchases worldwide by 2012.

Digital sales grew by 48 percent between 2006 and 2007, and accounted for just over $3 billion in revenue last year. Fueling this growth is the expansion of broadband, the expansion of the mobile music market, and a growing demand for single-track downloads. Of course, there are still obstacles to overcome including both piracy and the copy protection schemes that often discourage customers from either shopping at more than one store or refrains them from buying online altogether.