The sans-DRM music is higher quality (256 kbps AAC) and can be played music players other than ipod. There are no details as to if Apple will make connections to iTunes available to other MP3 players such as Zune or the Creative Zen. My bet is that they won’t, but Steve Jobs always surprises me.

Of course, the DRM free songs are priced at a 30% premium over the rusty-shackled, 99-cent versions, but how many times have we heard DRM opponents say “I would pay a premium for DRM-free music if it was available?” I say back it up with your dollars.

This should be interesting to watch. Will we see other music giants step forward to offer more DRM-free music, or will we just see higher quality files on P2P sites? Probably both.