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The Telegraph says that the UK store will open before the final quarter of the year. In the US Amazon has DRM-free music from all four major labels, an advantage over iTunes, which only has unrestricted tracks from EMI. However that advantage does not yet appear to have been converted into market share, with iTunes still dominant.

Much has also been made of Amazon's perceived price advantage. Many tracks can be purchased for less than iTunes' 99 cents, but in many cases Amazon can be significantly more expensive. Indeed it is this willingness to adopt record label demands for flexible pricing that is thought have allowed Amazon to dispense with DRM.

Amazon MP3 launched in the US in September of last year. It took Apple a year to expand iTunes from the US to the UK and other European countries; it seems Amazon is working to the same timescale. The UK launch is expected to be part of an international rollout.

Amazon did not respond to a request for comment.