German and French consumer groups have joined a Nordic-led drive to force Apple Inc. to make its iTunes online store compatible with digital music players made by rival companies, a Norwegian official said Monday.
Currently, song purchased and downloaded through iTunes are designed to work with Apple’s market-leading iPod players but not competitors’ models, including those using Microsoft Corp.’s Windows Media system. Likewise, iPods generally can’t play copy-protected music sold through non-Apple stores.
Last June, consumer agencies in Norway, Denmark and Sweden claimed that Apple was violating contract and copyright laws in their countries.
Norwegian Consumer Ombudsman Bjoern Erik Thon said French consumer lobby UFC-Que Choisir and its German counterpart, Ferbraucherzentralen, joined the effort late last year, and other European countries are considering it. Finland’s Kuluttajavirasto consumer group is also part of the effort.
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