This article on ExtremeTech argues that Apple will eventually be "Netscaped" by Microsoft because the Windows Media audio format (WMA) is superior to AAC, the audio format favored by Apple's iTunes store and the iPod music player.

Rather than rehash the WMA vs. AAC argument, I'd like to challenge some of the assumptions that keep coming up in articles about online music sales. I think it's important to consider three rather unpopular ideas:
1. Downloads are not the same as CD tracks.
2. Downloads are not for audiophiles.
3. Digital rights management is not optional.

1. Downloaded songs are not the same as CD tracks.
In the short term, record labels do not see online sales as a replacement for CD sales. Neither should you. Online music stores sell convenience and flexibility. They allow you to buy just one song (rather than a whole CD) and to get it right now. It's important to remember that CDs are still better in every other way imaginable -- especially in terms of audio quality.

2. Music downloads are not for audiophiles.
The encoding quality of online songs does not matter to the vast majority of potential buyers... as long as it sounds as good as a CD to the untrained ear. The compressed files sold by online stores are inferior to the tracks on most commercial CDs, but they're good enough for most consumers (who don't know what they're missing).

Those who do care deeply about audio codec quality might prefer WMA over AAC (or vice versa), but their opinion should be taken with a grain of salt. After all, most audiophiles will never pay to download a song encoded in any "lossy" audio format, so they are not potential customers for online music sales.

3. DRM is not optional. Not yet, anyway.
The big music labels are unwilling to offer their music for download without some form of copy protection. The current crop of online music stores would not even exist without some form of digital rights management.

DRM can be invisible, a nuisance, or a nightmare for consumers. The best system is one that protects the rights of the publisher without inconveniencing the user during normal, legal use.

If you believe DRM is pure evil, your online options are severely limited, but you can give your money to Magnatune or eMusic. Or you can buy a commercial CD without copy protection. If artists who use non-DRM solutions thrive, the market will go that way.

Now... what do you really want?
None of the online music stores offer what I really want: a perpetual legal license to download and use the best quality version of a given song. Even CDs do not offer this deal; the copyright holder reserves the right to sell you The White Album again a couple of years from now, in whatever the latest and greatest format happens to be.

When all the online stores upgrade their audio quality -- and you know it's going to happen -- do you think they will offer customers a free upgrade to the higher quality version? Or will they claim that the new version is a completely different item, and attempt to charge again for the same song?

I'll enthusiastically sign up with the first online store that promises to upgrade my 99 cent purchase to a higher quality format for free later on. For now, I think it's important to think of online music purchases as "disposable" music.

Online music is definitely not "future-proof."