Amazon to Offer DRM-Free MP3 Music

Amazon.com has announced it plans to offer songs from EMI Music and more than 12,000 other labels for sale in DRM-free, MP3 format later this year.

Amazon.com has announced it plans to launch a digital music store later this year offering music from EMI Music and over 12,000 other music labels for sale in DRM-free, MP3 format. The move follows EMI’s announcement last month that it would be offering its entire music catalog via Apple’s iTunes service in a DRM-free AAC format—at a premium price, although at twice the resolution of FairPlay-protected downloads.

Amazon.com hasn’t offered any details on the resolution of the MP3 files it plans to offer for sale or what pricing strategy might be. Offering music in MP3 format means the song will be playable on essentially any portable media player or computer. While the AAC format used by iTunes is widely supported in computers and personal media players, MP3 support is nearly universal.

“Our MP3-only strategy means all the music that customers buy on Amazon is always DRM-free and plays on any device,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com founder and CEO, in a statement. “We’re excited to have EMI joining us in this effort and look forward to offering our customers MP3s from amazing artists like Coldplay, Norah Jones, and Joss Stone.”

Although Amazon.com hasn’t yet offered any details, the “more than 12,000″ labels on board with Amazon.com’s new store in addition to EMI are likely smaller independent, perhaps working through clearinghouses or other distributors. One can be certain they don’t include any of the other major music distributors (Universal Music, Sony BMG, and Warner Music), although they will certainly be watching the results of EMI’s experiment with DRM-free music very closely.