Although most of the discussion of music downloads online this week has been about Apple iTunes, a milestone has been reached by its chief competitor in the US as it has just sold its 100 millionth download.

eMusic sold its 100 millionth song to Michael Brennan, who will have a song dedicated to him and recorded by Barenaked Ladies.

The milestone has been reached in 3 years of sales, with 50 million being sold just last year.

The site sells DRM-free songs, and does not, therefore, always stock the most current songs on the chart. Most of its catalogue consists of music from independent labels, and it offers 192Kbps VBR encoding, and compatibility with all portable music players, including the iPod.

Rather than selling each song for a fixed price, it offers a monthly subscription at three different levels to download up to 90 songs a month. A basic subscription costs £8.99 a month, about the same price as one CD, and includes 40 downloads.

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