iTunes DRM-Free Catalog Steadily Grows, Koch Joins Ranks

Apple is steadily expanding its iTunes Plus offering, part of a larger shift towards DRM-free content. The move, first announced on Monday, taps a sizable Koch catalog that includes Styles P, OTEP, Sinead O'Connor, Bebe Winans, Ray J, DJ Khaled, Jim Jones and Unk. Those artists have helped to make Koch a heavyweight independent, and a significant addition to the iTunes Plus offering. "Koch Records continues to embrace new delivery methods and technologies as we always have," said Bob Frank, president of the label.
The tracks will not be available as MP3s, rather, they will be packaged as unprotected, 256kbps AAC files. That is the codec of choice for Apple, though compatibility is actually spotty across non-iPod portable MP3 players. The incompatibility is an unfortunate asterisk on the iTunes Plus initiative, though iPod owners are unlikely to care.
Meanwhile, Apple recently dropped the price of its DRM-free downloads from $1.29 to 99-cents, a move that closely followed the launch of a cut-rate, MP3-based Amazon download store. Other iTunes Plus participants include Sub Pop, Nettwerk, IODA, and The Orchard.