EMI Music first major label to offer commercial DRM-Free music downloads in CD quality. This could be the start of a new era for music downloads.

The EMI Music content will be available in lower quality with DRM as before and in for about %30 premium ($1.29/€1.29/£0.99) in CD quality with DRM removed.
iTunes will the first store to offer the whole EMI Music catalog DRM free.

"Selling digital music DRM-free is the right step forward for the music industry," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "EMI has been a great partner for iTunes and is once again leading the industry as the first major music company to offer its entire digital catalogue DRM-free."

Complete albums from EMI Music artists purchased on the iTunes Store will automatically be sold at the higher sound quality and DRM-free, with no change in the price.
If you have already purchased standard tracks or albums with DRM, you will be able to upgrade your digital music for $0.30/€0.30/£0.20 per track.

Artists published by EMI Music include: Moby, The Chemical Brothers, Lenny Kravitz, Robbie Williams and The Beatles.

Engadget reports that the new DRM-Free tracks will be available from May at the iTunes store.
More details about the EMI offering can be found in this press-release on the EMI site.