Microsoft will also sell DRM-free music from EMI And on DRM Watch, Bill Rosenblatt takes a skeptical look at the development. Such as:

Apple has determined that it no longer needs DRM to sell iPods. It stands to benefit most from any additional unauthorized copying resulting from the lack of DRM. And any additional movement towards DRM-free music will hurt its would-be competitors among device and platform makers, notably Microsoft. In other words, give credit where it is due: Apple has indeed played this scenario smartly.

And:

Is DRM dead? We don't think so. Rights management should continue to play a role in helping content owners define different economic offers. Subscription on-demand services like Rhapsody and Napster are unworkable without DRM, and certain types of users prefer them. Furthermore, we don't see film and television content owners changing their stances on DRM anytime soon; this deal will most likely fall under the heading of "music industry mistakes we don't want to repeat."

More importantly, our definition of rights management encompasses more than encryption-based technologies like FairPlay and Windows Media DRM. If the role of content encryption is diminished, then alternative technologies like fingerprinting and watermarking become even more valuable to content owners and other players in the content value chain.