WebProNews

Microsoft has expressed interest in a partnership with Sony to compete with Apple in the online music industry.

With Apple making songs downloaded from iTunes only able to play on iPods, Microsoft wants to give consumers a choice. Ironically, Apple is facing a lawsuit from an iTunes customer dealing with this very same subject.

According to the lawsuit, "Apple has turned an open and interactive standard into an artifice that prevents consumers from using the portable hard drive digital music player of their choice."

Bill Gates told the Wall Street Journal that Microsoft and Sony have "a lot of incentive to work together" in the digital music industry such as online-music services and music piracy protection.

Gates stated, "We've got to get to the point where people see the choice - the choice of how they buy and the choice of the device they use - as being a huge plus."

Sony has not commented on a possible partnering with Microsoft.

WebProNews | Breaking eBusiness News
Your source for investigative ebusiness reporting and breaking news.