iTunes vs. emusic

...and, oh yeah, there are still physical CD's as well, but I've grown to hate the packaging rather than thinking of it as a bonus. I assume this to be a function of the ease of obtaining cover art electronically. Maybe I hate the packaging because I just moved?

This is not a review of emusic or iTunes I just have something to say about both of them. I only recently started using the iTunes Store because although I've used iTunes and owned an iPod for over a year I refused to download music encumbered by DRM. Then along came iTunes Plus (the plus in this case does actually mean it is better), and suddenly you can download DRM free music from the iTunes Store, but only artists under the EMI label.

The irony of this is readily apparent. iTunes succeeded where everyone else had failed in part because Steve Jobs convinced all of the major labels to sell music through iTunes. Now, although iTunes Plus sells DRM-free music it actually has less selection than emusic even though emusic includes none of the major labels because (as of today) none of the indie labels are able to sell their music in DRM-free format via iTunes Plus. So I can get Neon Bible DRM free via emusic but not through iTunes Plus.

In the end both are available, you don't get barred from emusic for downloading from iTunes but for now I can say that I prefer emusic. Take that for what it's worth and give it a try if you like.