In a previous post I told you that Steve Jobs wants to provide DRM-free music through iTunes, but was held back by music companies. Steve must have had a few long and hard talks, because now EMI and Apple are teaming up to provide high quality DRM-free tracks through the iTunes music store, priced at $1.30. The same track, in a lower sound quality, with DRM costs $0.99. For 30 cents, you get a track you can actually use, with a higher bitrate.
At the same time this could be a trick by Apple to get around the legal issues currently being discussed about iTunes music not being available to other players than the iPod. Smart eh?