Is Madonna's Record Label Tweaking Her Album Sales?

In a word, yes.

Madonna's MDNA album is currently number one on the Billboard charts, and with 359,000 units sold, it's the highest-grossing debut of 2012 so far, beating out artists like Rihanna and Katy Perry.

However, a new report suggests that the Material Girl's numbers aren't exactly organic, as her album sales included units sold in conjunction with her upcoming concert tour. For every ticket sold to one of her shows, buyers also received a copy of MDNA, and it is not yet known how many of these CDs were included in her total numbers.

Of course, given how many fans are willing to shell out a few hundred bucks to see Madonna live, it's safe to assume that a decent amount of albums were lumped in with her ticket sales. So sneaky! But is it fair? And should someone recalculate the totals?