The networks that broadcast the Indigenous Music Countdown are included in a scoring system which determines the overall position of a song on the top #40 listing. The radio stations are part of a National Aboriginal Music Countdown Advisory Group, which is made up of representatives from each of the Aboriginal radio networks across Canada.
The Advisory group has input in formulating an accurate representation of the popularity of an Aboriginal recording being broadcast throughout Canada. The music chart is formulated on a weekly basis using tracking information broadcast members. This includes the monitoring of song rotations, song requests, and overall popularity within a given network. The Indigenous Music Countdown represents an overall summery of weekly a given song on a weekly basis.
In terms of assessing the chart based on music sales data, Aboriginal music sales information is very limited at this time. Mainstream charts utilize the services of Nielsen SoundScan, which gathers direct-to-consumer transactions and Internet sales. This methodology is unavailable to be inclusive of all Aboriginal music sales at this time.