Rumor: Amazon prepping DRM-free music store

With Apple's contracts with the big four coming up for renewal, we knew that some sort of shakeup was in order but we sure didn't see this one coming: In a bid to loosen the stranglehold that Apple has on the digital music market, the major labels are backing a Amazon.com run music store that's set to launch next month. The store will allegedly sport "reduced protection against copyright infringement," though that doesn't necessarily mean DRM-free. It seems that the store will likely serve up an iTunes-like mix of protected and unprotected tracks, with the DRM-free tunes being supplied by none other than EMI and a few independent labels. The major labels would like nothing more than to see a major player in online retail like Amazon enter the market, as it would give them some much-needed leverage against Apple in contract negotiations. Meanwhile, a little competition (especially in terms of pricing) could go a long way for the digital music consumer.

For more on Amazon's rumored music store:
- see this Ars Technica article