CNet and other outlets report that Norway's consumer watchdog is dropping legal action against Apple now that music from iTunes will be without DRM protection. The legal action complained that Apple's FairPlay DRM prevented tracks purchased from Apple could not be played on non-Apple devices.
Norway's consumer ombudsman, Bjoern Erik Thon, said Wednesday that he would drop his complaint against iTunes before Norway's Market Council, telling Agence France Presse "we have no reason to pursue them anymore." Norway has been particularly vocal among European critics regarding the way Apple had used DRM technologies on the iTunes store to limit the use of purchased iTunes songs to iPods.
Apple's use of DRM served the dual goals of protecting music tracks and, more importantly, enforcing a business model that tied consumers to the Apple platform. However, given that the record industry business model has been broken for a long time, it's no surprise that the labels and Apple ended the use of FairPlay DRM for music.
