The information from my source on Tuesday was that the album announcement was only days away, and that both the estate and Sony were in the process of agreeing on a release date that will give everyone enough time to finalize a few things and get it into production. The good news is that the release WILL be in 2010, and that's what everyone has been striving for.
The analogy I was told on Tuesday was this: "pretend this album was like a huge nine course meal being prepared, the stage we are at now is sprinkling the salt and pepper onto the food".
I was told the estate has been working extra hard on everything, making sure the album has a modern flow, and that no songs will be considered "unfinished" when fans and critics listen to it for the first time. At this time there is NO final date that has been decided upon but the idea is still to get it out in late November or early December.
The marketing on this album will be very different compared to other albums from alive artists. Sony does plan to make this a big bang with television specials, interviews, ads on billboards, television, and radio, plus promotional campaigns with big US retailers to tie in Michael Jackson's Vision.
Things are still ready for this year, so while I understand many peoples patience have been tested (mine included), the wait is nearly over.
As I hear more information, I'll be posting it here ASAP. There is another meeting next week on the album and in my opinion that's when the big announcement will come.
*Disclaimer: please do not take this information as gospel but rather as an indication of what is going on within Sony Music USA at this time. It is your ultimate choice as to whether you believe it or not. Thank you