EU launches official probe into iTunes, big four

Interesting choice of timing: expert parade-rainers, the European Commission, have slammed Apple for anti-competitive practices again and this time, the big four music labels are tagging along for the ride. The EU has launched an official probe, claiming that Apple and the major labels engaged in anti-competitive practices in order to restrict customer choice. The crux of the argument is Apple's national approach to the iTunes Store, which allows for different rates in different territories (our British friends, for example, pay more than 1.5x what we do for the latest pop chart-topper). According to an Apple spokesperson, the company "wanted to operate a Europe-wide store, but music labels and publishers expressed legal and copyright concerns." Is it true? I'll let the EU sort that one out.

For more on the probe:
- see this Associated Press article