EMI Group has agreed to take the digital locks off songs it sells through the Apple iTunes store, the recording company announced in London Monday.
But there will be a premium price for songs sold without copying restrictions, it said in a joint announcement with Apple.
Songs with digital rights management (DRM) software that prevents copying from one player to another will continue to sell for 99 cents, while those without the DRM software will cost $1.29.
The premium tracks will also be encoded at 256 KBps in the advanced audio coding (AAC) format, an improvement over the current 128 KBps format. Users who already own the older DRM-protected tracks will also be able to upgrade their tracks for an extra 30 cents each.
The move comes after Apple chief executive Steve Jobs called for recording companies to sell songs without copy-protection software.
"This is the next big step forward in the digital music revolution — the movement to completely interoperable DRM-free music," Jobs said at the news conference.
"The right thing to do is to tear down walls that precluded interoperability by going DRM-free and that starts here today."
Jobs said it made no sense to have copyright protection software on downloaded songs and not on CDs.
EMI said almost all of its back catalogue, including material by the Rolling Stones, Norah Jones and Coldplay, will be available under the new deal.
Beatles excluded
However, music by the Beatles continues to be excluded and there was no hint of a deal that would make Beatles songs available for download.
Apple Corps Ltd., which is the Beatles' commercial guardian, has so far declined to allow the Fab Four's music on any internet music services.
There had been speculation ahead of the joint news conference that EMI and Apple would make an announcement regarding the Beatles.
DRM software prevents songs downloaded from the iTunes store being transferred to digital players made by Microsoft, Sony or other makers.
Consumer rights groups have opposed DRM software on downloaded songs because consumers have traditionally had the right to copy songs they have paid for once.
European legislators have also taken steps to try to open up the downloading market.
Some analysts suggest that lifting the software restrictions could boost sales of online music, which currently account for about 10 per cent of global music sales.
Apple's iTunes store will start selling EMI songs in the "premium" format in May and will allow users to upgrade songs they have already bought to the DRM-free format.
Album-length downloads will continue to be the same price whether they have DRM software or not.
Share Tools
Top News Headlines
- Everest victim's husband says family not seeking government help
- The husband of a Toronto woman who died trying to climb Mt. Everest on Saturday says his family is not seeking government help to cover the cost of bringing his wife's body home. more »
- B.C. premier unhappy with disgraced Mountie's transfer
- B.C. Premier Christy Clark says she is not happy with the RCMP decision to transfer a disgraced Alberta Mountie to the West Coast. more »
- Henrique's OT goal sends Devils into Stanley Cup final
- The New Jersey Devils will vie for a potential fourth Stanley Cup in franchise history after defeating the New York Rangers in six games in the Eastern final, courtesy of rookie Adam Henrique's goal early in overtime. more »
- Employment Insurance review boards to be scrapped
- The federal government is scrapping two review boards used by people appealing decisions made about their employment insurance. more »
Latest Technology & Science News Headlines
- Unloading of docked SpaceX capsule to start Saturday
- The privately bankrolled SpaceX Dragon capsule made a historic arrival at the International Space Station on Friday, and astronauts will begin unloading some of the 544 kilograms of food, water, clothing and other supplies its carrying starting Saturday. more »
- South Africa, Australia to share world's largest telescope
- South Africa and Australia will jointly host the Square Kilometre Array, which promises to be the world's largest telescope, the international consortium in charge of the project said Friday. more »
- Bonavista, N.L., 'coyote' was really wolf, tests confirm
- Wolves have not been seen in Newfoundland since around 1930 and were believed to have been hunted to extinction on the island, but genetic tests have confirmed that an 82-pound animal shot on the Bonavista Peninsula in March was, in fact, a wolf. more »
- Once-rare argus butterfly thriving thanks to climate change
- Global warming is threatening the existence of many species, such as the giant polar bear, but in the case of Britain's brown argus butterfly, it took a species in trouble and made it thrive. more »
- Yahoo scraps digital magazine designed for iPad
- Yahoo has killed Livestand, a tablet magazine, just six months after its debut on the iPad. more »
Bob McDonald's Blog
Government to shut down unique fresh water research area May. 25, 2012 12:31 PM The Experimental Lakes Area research facility in Northern Ontario is being closed down after 44 years of providing invaluable data to scientists in Canada and internationally, a decision that has stunned researchers and environmental groups.
Quirks & Quarks
- May 26: Before the Lights Go Out May. 25, 2012 4:15 PM A new book, "Before the Lights Go Out: Conquering the Energy Crisis Before It Conquers Us", suggests that the unpredictable, unplanned, ad-hoc way our energy use developed in the past will shape our energy future.
Latest Features
- Aylmer triple stabbing leads to first-degree murder charges
- Everest victim's husband says family not seeking government help
- B.C. premier unhappy with disgraced Mountie's transfer
- Third B.C. salmon farm quarantined
- What a Greek euro exit could mean for Canada
- RCMP officer charged in fatal crash
- Canada ending 'Buffalo shuffle' for visas, closing consulate
- Reclaiming the dead on Mt. Everest
- Employment Insurance review boards to be scrapped
