Company announces DRM protection will be removed from songs on iTunes.
Apple is to sell songs through its iTunes application that are free of copyright protection software, the company has announced.
Phil Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide product marketing at the firm, made a speech at the Macworld conference in San Francisco yesterday (Tuesday) revealing downloaders will be able to purchase music which is free from digital rights management (DRM) restrictions.
At present, songs bought via iTunes can only be played on computers or the company's iPod device but the removal of DRM software will mean they are compatible with most mp3 players.
Mr Schiller told delegates at the conference an agreement has been reached with major record labels Sony BMG, Universal and Warner Music and changes will be implemented soon.
"Over the last six years songs have been $0.99 (79p). Music companies want more flexibility. Starting today, eight million songs will be DRM free and by the end of this quarter, all ten million songs will be DRM free," he said.
Those who upgrade to iTunes Plus, the latest version of the application, will have to pay a fee of 20p to upgrade songs from their old library to the new one.
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