Apple FairPlay DRM is illegal in Norway

The Consumer Ombudsman of Norway has decided that the FairPlay DRM (Digital Rights Management) that protects songs purchased from Apple's iTunes music store from being played on non-iPods is illegal there.

According to out-law.com, The Norwegian Consumer Council, Forbrukerradet, lodged a complaint with the Ombudsman on behalf of Norwegian consumers claiming that the Fairplay DRM system acted against the interests of consumers.

"iTunes Music Store must remove its illegal lock-in technology or appear in court... As of right now we're heading for a big breakthrough that will hopefully pave the way for consumers everywhere to regain control of music they legally purchase," The Norwegian Consumer Ombudsman wrote in a letter to Apple.

Norway isn't the only European country complaining about FairPlay. Consumers' rights groups in France and Germany are now joining forces with Norway and trying to resolve this matter. Apple has issued a following statement on the matter:

"Apple is aware of the concerns we've heard from several agencies in Europe and we're looking forward to resolving these issues as quickly as possible... Apple hopes that European governments will encourage a competitive environment that lets innovation thrive, protects intellectual property and allows consumers to decide which products are successful."

FairPlay is a digital rights management (DRM) technology created by Apple Inc., built in to the QuickTime multimedia technology and used by the iPod, iTunes, and the iTunes Store. Every file bought from the iTunes Store with iTunes is encoded with FairPlay. It digitally encrypts AAC audio files and prevents users from playing these files on unauthorized computers.