Music download sales surged to 2.9 million during the Christmas week, the highest seven-day figure ever recorded in the UK, according to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) trade association.

The weekly total is more than double that for 2006. And annual download sales of 77 million were also double that of the year before.

"Recent years have seen a boost in download sales at Christmas, but this was a larger increase than expected and sales should continue to grow throughout 2008," said BPI director of communications Matt Phillips.

"The enormous choice of music and great value for money, combined with the ease and convenience of downloading, means legal digital music services are becoming increasingly popular."