Black Ops boosts Rolling Stones sales

Billboard's reporting that sales of various Rolling Stones tracks have lifted substantially thanks to Black Ops' release.

On the strength of the exposure provided by Black Ops' launch ad, track sales for Gimme Shelter jumped from slightly more than 2,000 copies the week of October 31 31 to 5,000-plus for the following week, then doubled to nearly 11,000 for the week ending November 14, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Getting the track on the ad wasn't easy, According to Activision VP of music affairs Tim Riley. New York-based ABKCO Music & Records holds the rights to the song and demanded to see the footage before it aired. The publisher had to fly to New York with the ad on a secure laptop to get approval.

For the first time in Activision history, it allowed another company to make edits to the ad itself in order to obtain approval from the band members as well.

"It's such a big deal, such a serious song and such a big band... we had to fly out for it," Riley said.

"They certainly say 'no' more than they say 'yes.' It's the Rolling Stones. It's not like they need the money."

There's more through there. The game released on November 9.