Amazon Music (previously
Amazon MP3) is an
online music store and
music locker operated by
Amazon.com. Launched in
public beta on September 25, 2007, in January 2008 it became the first music store to sell music without
digital rights management (DRM) from the four major music labels (
EMI,
Universal,
Warner Music, and
Sony BMG), as well as many independents. All tracks were originally sold in 256 kilobits-per-second
variable bitrate MP3 format without per-customer
watermarking or DRM; however, some tracks are now watermarked. Licensing agreements with recording companies restrict the countries in which music can be sold: Amazon.com only sells music to US customers while Amazon.co.uk only sells music to UK customers.