French consumer association UFC-Que Choisir has launched legal action over the two companies' proprietary music formats, claiming that the respective DRM used by both Sony and Apple, which means songs bought from their online song shops can't be played on other manufacturers' media players, is limiting consumers' choice. The consumer group announced it would be taking legal action against the pair after conducting interoperability tests last year between a selection of music download services and digital music players and criticising the lack of interoperable DRM.
"The total absence of interoperability between DRM removes not only the consumer's power to independently choose their purchase and where they buy it from, but also constitutes a significant restraint on the free circulation of creative works," the group said.
