Microsoft launches iTunes rival

Alicia Keys is one of the artists whose songs are available

Microsoft has launched a music-downloading service in the US to rival Apple's iTunes and other providers.

The software giant has released a preview version of MSN Music, which allows users legally to download songs for 99 cents (£0.55) each.

Whole albums will be available for $9.99. About 500,000 songs will be initially available, with more added on a weekly basis, Microsoft said.

It did not say when the service would be available outside the US.

Apple's iTunes is already available outside the US, competing with providers such as Napster.

We are offering what we believe is the largest and highest quality catalogue of legal music on the internet MSN vice president Yusuf Mehdi How to download music

Microsoft's entry into the download market could herald a much wider take-up of download music, analysts say. The company also hopes its music service will draw more users to its web portal and thus enable it to increase advertising revenue.

Microsoft said it hoped to "bring digital music to the masses", and that it had "built a better service than the Apple service".

Tough chase?

MSN vice president Yusuf Mehdi said songs on MSN Music were encoded at a higher bit rate than Apple's standard format for iTunes, meaning that these songs should have better sound quality.

Gadgets compatible with MSN Music

"[We are] offering what we believe is the largest and highest quality catalogue of legal music on the internet, available on the broadest selection of portable devices," he said.

Microsoft expects to launch the full version of MSN Music later this year.

Users will be able to access it through the company's MSN website and also the latest version of its Windows Music Player.

Analysts believe it will take Microsoft time to catch up with iTunes, saying users of Apple's service and other current providers of legal downloads are unlikely to switch.

"It's the people who haven't started doing music downloads yet who are most likely to get interested [in Microsoft's service]," said analyst Josh Bernoff of Forrester Research.

"They'll take the market from behind. It's not the leaders they'll go after, it's the followers."

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MSN versus iTunes
	MSN Music	iTunes
Cost to download song	99 cents (55 pence)	99 cents
Compatible music players	More than 70 Microsoft devices	Apple iPod or HP clone
Number of songs available	500,000, rising to one million over coming weeks	One million
Bit rate (sounds compressed at higher rate in theory of higher quality)	160	128
Burn limit	Downloaded song can be played on up to five different computers and burned to CD up to seven times	Downloaded song can be played on up to five different computers and burned to CD up to seven times
Transfer limit	Downloaded song can be transfered to unlimited number of portable audio devices	Downloaded song can be transfered to unlimited number of portable audio devices
Downloads bought so far	New service	125 million