Today Amazon has unveiled amazonMP3, a new online music download service. Individual songs run for 89 or 99 cents, depending on the song, and albums start at $4.99 (most albums range between $5.99 and $9.99). All the songs are in MP3 format, encoded at 256 kbps, and are DRM-free, which means that the songs you download will work on any digital audio player on the market today.

iTunes, the current online music store market leader, offers DRM-protected AAC files for 99 cents each, DRM-free singles for $1.29, and most albums for $9.99. iTunes has over 6 million songs available for download, while Amazon currently offers 2 million songs.

No DRM? Higher quality? Lower prices? Mac- and Windows-compatible?  Works with any digital audio player? Sounds like iTunes may have its first serious competitor!