Random House Audio To Drop DRM

New York, NY (AHN) - Random House Audio has said it will drop encryption from its audiobooks, a move aimed at wider distribution of audio books and in line with a trend among music publishers.

The switch begins Mar. 1 and Random House, part of publishing giant Bertelsmann, has begun informing book agents of the change. The decision came after a test in September where Random House audio sold 500 audiobooks through eMusic.

"If we insists on using DRM, our audiobooks can't be sold to consumers who have iPods, unless they buy them from Audible or iTunes," publisher Madeline McIntosh told the Wall Street Journal.

Recently, music publishers dropped DRM in favor of the encryption-free MP3 standard.