The two sides of the digital music sales market, the sellers and the buyers, each have a legitimate gripe with the market leader iTunes Music Store (And virtually every other legal alternative, save eMusic which only carries Indie labels). The music industry wants variable pricing, the customers want DRM-free files so they can play them on any MP3 player. According to this story from Hypebot, Amazon will solve both of these problems with its own music store which it is planning to launch in the first quarter of 2007.

First of all, this is a brilliant idea. DRM-free music is the best way to challenge iTunes' stranglehold on the market. With the iPod firmly entrenched as the market-leading MP3 player, any new store needs to sell files which will play on the iPod. The problem has always been that the studios view DRM as their only line of defense against rampant piracy. How do you mollify the studios? Give them what they want, the ability to adjust the price of songs.

Amazon has done its homework, all that's left is to see the reaction of the studios. But, if the major studios sign on with Amazon they're basically abandoning their company line that piracy is killing the industry. Should they do it, absolutely, but when it comes right down to it, I'm not sure they will. If I was Amazon, I would pitch this to the studios as a way to regain the leverage they have lost to Apple. — Brian Ward

Go to story from Hypebot

Technorati tags: music, amazon, itunes.