Amazon MP3 is currently the greatest threat to the hegemony of Apple and its iTunes store which owns up to 70 percent of the worldwide legal online music market, making it by far the biggest music retailer.
But while Amazon MP3 and Apple are the two 750kg gorillas in the marketplace, there are smaller but feisty players on the floor which will give the big retailers a run for their money.
Our short guide will give you a list of 10 sites when you can legally download songs either free or for a fee in the UK.
(1) 7Digital
This newcomer on the market has some very strong backing, having been able to secure the support of all four major music labels and is currently selling all their catalogues DRM-free in 320kbps MP3 format (although this is for UK only). It also has an indiestore where you can download free music from upcoming artists as well which has clocked more than 3.1 million listens since its inception. There's also a great free downloads section and you will be able to purchase albums from as little as £5 and from more than four million songs. Popular tracks like Beyonce's "If I were a boy" cost 89p though.
(2) HMV
Unlike 7Digital, HMV.com has a huge presence on the high street. The sound tracks are in great 320kbps MP3 format and are DRM free - meaning that you can listen to them on practically all devices around.. The download service, which exists since September 2005, sells single MP3 for as little as 69p while albums such as Take that's "The circus" cost £6.99 (although The Fratelli's Costello Music is £5.49). With more than four million tunes available, the only thing missing is an indie shop and a few free tracks. Note that this website is not compatible with Firefox or Chrome.
(3) Emusic
Emusic is the dark horse of the lot. It is the only one which offers Audiobooks as well as music. You Can get songs as low as 20p and if you cancel at any time, you get to keep the music you have downloaded. There are no Digital Rights Management structure and all the files are in high quality 320kbps format. Emusic offers 4.5 million tracks and has an introductory "50 free downloads promotion" currently running. But don't expect to find popular artists on their websites. We could neither find Kings of Leon or Leona Lewis.
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