DRM-free MP3s drive music sales

Online music retailer 7digital.com has announced that it expects to stock DRM-free MP3s from the Sony BMG and Universal record labels in the near future.

It already has a catalogue of DRM-free MP3s from the two other major record labels, EMI and Warner and said that these had boosted sales by more than 300 per cent year-on-year.

DRM (digital rights management) technology is used as an anti-piracy measure and prevents people buying digital music from copying it to multiple devices.

However, it is incredibly unpopular and record labels are beginning to offer large chunks of their catalogues free of DRM.

"High-quality, DRM-free MP3 downloads have really sparked a new wave of digital music take up," said Ben Drury, chief executive of 7digital.com.

Drury said that using the MP3 format, compatible with most types of digital music players including the iPod, gave 7digital a significant advantage over iTunes, which only sells music in the AAC format. AAC is only compatible with Apple's products.

"It is now clear that MP3 downloads represent the future for digital music. With two of the four major labels now supporting MP3 in the UK, we expect to see the whole market supporting MP3 in the not-too-distant future," he said.

Traffic to the 7digital.com site has risen by 130 per cent since January and it receives nearly two million visits a month, the company claimed.

www.7digital.com