Amazon to take on iTunes with DRM-free music store

Posted on 24 Apr 2007 at 09:41

Amazon looks set to launch an online music service to rival iTunes, according to reports from various media outlets.

The store is slated to launch in May, with Amazon believed to have approached all four of the major music companies with a view to selling tracks in MP3 format, free from digital rights management (DRM) restrictions.

Retail Week reports that Amazon had planned to launch a hardware MP3 player to coincide with the opening of the store, but that talks with manufacturers had fallen through. Had the talks been successful, it would have given the company, best known for selling books and music on CD and DVD, an equal footing with Apple, in having both a store and a competitor to the iPod.

However, it would still have an uphill battle. The iPod and iTunes both enjoy commanding positions in their respective industries, with even Microsoft's Zune capturing only a single digit percentage of the market, despite impressive marketing and considerable hype.

Author: Nik Rawlinson

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