Audio format wars harm consumers

Here's yet another reason to support blanket licensing: format wars. Apple uses AAC at the iTunes store; most others use Secure WMA. Neither is playable on music players (ahem--MP3 players) designed to play the other.

The Times actually a) covers this issue, and b) offers some useful tips to the uninitiated.

Support blanket licensing. Apple's unique power is that it was the first company to get all the big labels to sign on the dotted line. If they can't withold that right, consumers will be downloading in MP3--or even some lossless compression format, e.g. FLAC--before long.