Following the Apple's recent challenge to the music industry to stop requiring DRM for online music sales, and EMI's pledge to do just that via the iTunes service, software giant Microsoft joins the DRM-free initiative.  Selling music via its Zune music service, Microsoft plans to provide DRM-free music from EMI as well.  While it will remain in the proprietary .wma file format, it will be free of copy protections, so users would in theory be able to convert their Zune music purchases to other audio formats, compatible with other music players.

Could this bring about massive change in the digital download marketplace for music?  What will happen once users are no longer tied to a specific service depending on what player they purchased?  Who will come out ahead in a free market?