[Swordmaker]

The article doesn't make it clear, but doesn't this mean that now people can buy EMI music from the ITMS and use it on any mp3 player?

yep, that's what it means.

[Mr. Blonde]

Thanks, that is what I thought. But the only thing they talk about is the Fairplay system and not how this is so much better than that. The way I read it the first time through was that it was still linking the music exlusively to iTunes and iPod.

[antiRepublicrat]

Well, any player that supports AAC, unless you want to transcode. OTOH, 256kbps AAC transcoded to 128kpbs mp3 or wma probably still sounds close to what those would sound ripped from an original source.