[Macworld]

Post your comments for iTunes is DRM-free, adds variable pricing here

[joebot]

Long time coming. This finally removes one of two obstacles that has kept me from buying more through iTunes than I have -- the threat of losing access to my music. The other obstacle is not getting a booklet with pretty artwork and production notes. Let alone a folding 12" album sleeve. Sigh...

[wally626]

No 12" cover art, but many albums do include a booklet, if you buy the entire album.

Wonder how many more iTunes plus upgrades are waiting for me?? They have come in occasional bursts so far but I still have a lot that are not Plus yet.

[davekriss93]

Any word on how long these upgrade paths will be available?

[cycomachead]

Ok, so neat...really really hoping this doesn't backfire on Apple. But what does this do to iTunes plus? Are they still 30 cents of the 69? and 30 of the 1.29?

[Unicron]

I notice a lot of the top ten songs are still 99¢.

[walruscp]

Now if they could make it so ALL my old DRM purchases can be upgraded. Still have about 80 songs that are DRM (60 if you exclude freebies of the week which I heard will not be upgradeable).

[mathogre]

There is one little problem. Rather than making all of the music DRM-free, they removed some that apparently couldn't be made DRM free. I know because there was an album I wanted to purchase that wasn't DRM-free. That album was "Hadra" from the group "Lumin." It's a middle-Eastern ambient album. The complete album had been previously available, albeit with encryption. Now it's not there. Brilliant.

[pauli63]

I have 388 songs which take up 2.01GB that apparently aren't available to upgrade to iTunes Plus and therefore are forever in 128k AAC DRM. What are we supposed to do?

[Speed_Racer]

I like older acts that haven't been popular in decades. Of the 40 or so songs that I've checked this morning, number of songs that cost 69¢: 0. That includes songs that were never released as singles and songs that never even made it onto the Billboard charts. I suspect only ultra-obscure indie acts have songs that go for 69¢. Schiller is full of it.

[Stephen123]

Even if the freebies are not upgradable for 30 cents, they should offer them as an automated update at full price. They'd make a lot of money from folks upgrading the freebies they ended up liking.

[Stephen123]

A record store should have a discount bin. iTunes should have a list of 100 favorite 69 cent songs. It would make it seem less like a straight up price increase.

[pauli63]

For example: Pink Floyd The Wall. It's still available to purchase, but not for me to upgrade. What gives?