Billboard's rules surrounding merch bundles counting towards sales has caused a certain amount of controversy. Nicki Minaj previously threw a fit after her merch bundles weren't counted yet Travis Scott's Astroworld sales did. Earlier this month, it was reported that DJ Khaled lost 100K worth of album sales after his energy drink bundles didn't count towards his overall sales. It ultimately cost him the top spot on the Billboard 200.
Roc Nation's COO Desiree Perez made a very rare comment to the New York Times about whether bundles should count towards album sales. She recently elaborated on those comments to Hits Daily Double. Perez was asked whether she believes bundles should be abolished altogether. “That’s exactly our position,” she said. “Music consumption is the only true metric that should matter. Bundling devalues the art and is demeaning to the artists. It needs to go, and we are urging Billboard to take that step as soon as possible.”
The decision to remove bundling altogether towards album sales might bring down album sales in general but Perez explained this would inevitably put every artist on an equal playing field. “By now, it’s no secret that Billboard will do anything in its power to blunt streaming’s momentum—whether it’s an arcane formula to calculate streams or arbitrary rules for bundling downloads,” she said. “So whether numbers or chart positions are affected, I think artists will be excited for a day when everyone is playing by the same rules.”
She added, "Why Billboard is continuing to filter streaming numbers through what they call an 'album equivalent' and not measuring consumption in the form in which it’s actually consumed is stunning.”