iTunes Store finally allowed to drop DRM - at a price

Stephen Withers
Wednesday, 07 January 2009 03:07

Opinion and Analysis

EMI's products have been the major exception, and it was the first major label to rise to Jobs' challenge to drop copy protection.

But you won't have to wait until April for a greater range of DRM-free content from iTunes. Eight million songs are immediately available in unprotected format, and the remaining two million will be ready by the end of March.

Like previous iTunes Plus releases, the newly DRM-freed tracks will be offered in 256 kbps AAC format. AAC provides higher audio quality then the alternative MP3 format at a given bit rate.

Among the advantages of buying DRM-free music are the ability to play the tracks on a wider range of hardware, and the assurance of continued use even if the retailer leaves the business.

Another change to the iTunes Store will allow iPhone users to download songs directly to the handset over a 3G connection. This was previously only possible over a Wi-Fi connection.

This capability may be welcomed in the US where flat-rate 'all you can eat' data plans are commonplace, but it has the potential to significantly add to the cost of buying music in countries where excess data charges are levied.

After music is downloaded directly to an iPhone, it is automatically copied to the user's computer the next time the iPhone is synced.

Similar changes have been announced in the UK, where the price points will be 59p, 79p and 99p. So far there's no word from Apple Australia on the matter. Music licensing is a notoriously fragmented industry, with different companies holding rights in different geographical markets.