New full-track download service will work with Apple's iPod, iPhone and any other mobile handset.
Napster is looking to take on Apple at its own game by finally offering a full-track music download service and making compatible with iPhone and iPod.The company says music downloaded from the currently US-only service ($0.99 per track) will be automatically synced with a user's existing iTunes library, from which it can be transferred to an iPhone in the normal fashion.
Or any other kind of phone for that matter, so watch out Nokia Music Store.
This is possible because the six million songs available from Napster (from all for major labels) come in MP3 format with no copy protection.
Most songs available from iTunes use Apple's fairplay DRM (with the exception of EMI tracks) and as such can only be played on Apple devices.
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Speaking at the unveiling of its new full-track service yesterday, Napster CEO Chris Gorog said: "We're now moving from under the DRM cloud. Now consumers can use Napster with any device."
Napster has previously only offered music as part of unlimited monthly streaming model - it had 760,000 subscribers as of March 31.
More than four billion songs have been sold through iTunes since its launch in 2003.
