Emusic rivals Apple iTunes with 22p tracks

America's second largest online music store has opened a European site offering unrestricted downloads.

Emusic looks set to give the more established channels a run for their money by offering mp3 recordings that will work on all digital players, even iPods.

However the site, which is the second most successful download site in the US after Apple's iTunes Music Store, has no deals with the major music labels such as Universal or EMI.

Therefore it can't offer any of these companies back catalogues, but Emusic said it can still boast a selection of more than one million tracks from over 3,800 labels around the world.

Emusic and the major labels have no deal in place because the subscription-based site offers mp3 recordings that are free of digital rights management (DRM) restrictions; a condition required by the major labels.

Not only does this mean people can download tracks to any music player, including Apple's iPod, they can also get unlimited CD recording along with the ability to transfer music to any desktop.

If people choose to end their subscription, tracks downloaded from Emusic will not be deleted from the music player.

While the site does offer tracks from known and established bands such as sixties band The Kinks, Paul Weller and Gomez, it also gives people a chance to listen to less well known or emerging bands and artists.

The European site is offering new customers a free trial of 25 downloads. There are three subscription rates, starting at £8.99 per month for 40 downloads, which the company said works out at 22 pence per track. Apple's iTunes charges 79 pence per track.

The other rates offer 65 downloads for £11.99 per month or 90 downloads for £14.99 a month; people can cancel at any time.

The news of Emusic's expansion follows hard on the heels of another download service also trying a different approach to break Apple's stranglehold on the market.
Spiral Frog, which is currently only available to US and Canadian consumers, has deals with EMI and Universal and is offering to distribute music free in return for the user agreeing to watch specific online ads.

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