Updated: July 12, 2020 (September 13, 2004)
Charts & IllustrationsHow MSN Music Stacks Up
MSN Music joins a crowded field of online music stores, including at least six that also offer songs in the Windows Media Format. This chart contains an overview of the major stores as of Sept. 2004.
| Store | Songs Available | How Users Pay | Codec and Quality (Kbps) | Software Required | Restrictions | Supported Devices | Price |
| MSN Music | >500,000 (>1 million licensed) | Per download | Windows Media Audio 9 (WMA9); variable bit rate (VBR), average 160 | Internet Explorer (IE) 5.01 or later with plug-in, and Windows Media Player (WMP) 7.1 or later | Users may play songs on 5 PCs and burn a playlist to CD 7 times | Windows Media 9 (WM9) DRM-compatible (about 70 devices) | Song: US$0.99 and up
Album: US$9.99 and up |
| BuyMusic at Buy.com | >500,000 | Per download | WMA9, 128 or 256 | IE 5.01 or later and WMP 9 or later | Restrictions vary by content owner | WM9 DRM-compatible | Song: US$0.79 |
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