UMG Testing Sale of Unrestricted Tracks

I just sent this to both Apple and UMG:

I write for a website called Newsvine, and am also an avid follower of technology news, especially with respect to digital music and DRM.

The NYT recently published a story about Universal Music and the decision to remove DRM from much of their catalogue for a limited period - with offerings on iTunes being the exception.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/10/business/10music.html?_r=2&ref=technology&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

From the article:

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"But the music will not be offered D.R.M.-free through Apple's iTunes, the leading music service. The use of copy protection software has become a major bone of contention in the digital music business, where iTunes accounts for the vast majority of download sales. The record labels generally have required that retailers place electronic locks to limit copying of music files."

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"The offer of Universal's music under the new terms is being framed as a test, to run into January, allowing executives to study consumer demand and any effect on online piracy."

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I'm curious -- what percentage of total digital music sales result from purchases made from the iTunes store?

Do you think a reasonable test of "consumer demand" is possible if Universal refuses to allow Apple to participate in the program?

If not, do you believe that Universal Music intends to report low demand based on cherry-picked statistics, culled from poor research, in an effort to justify the continued use of DRM?

Do you see this as an effort by Universal Music to re-establish dominance in the realm of Digital Music -- while simultaneously wresting control from Apple?

Related: How are EMI's digital sales doing, now that their content is offered without DRM?