British rockers Coldplay are giving fans the chance to own their new album for half the usual price - by announcing a "buy one get one free" offer on Internet downloads.

Now, whenever music lovers download a track from new album Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends, they will automatically get another song of their choice for free.

And the band hope it will persuade more people to pay for their music.

Frontman Chris Martin says, "Buy one get one free, it comes from working in Kwik Save (British budget supermarket), I think."

"As I said before nobody buys albums any more, certainly no body buys full albums and we've made an album that you have to have from start to finish."

And the singer insists it was very hard to make a follow-up to 2005's hugely successful X+y, which gained them their first number one in the U.s. album chart.

He adds, "I think we were a bit anthemed out after X+y. I feel like we've got everything to prove and everyone to prove it to this time."