Apple Lobbies Music Labels for Unlimited Music Downloads

Apple is reportedly trying to get major music labels to give iTunes customers unlimited downloads of music they've already purchased. If successful, iTunes users would be able to access and download purchased music across multiple devices, in essence having a permanent online backup in case the originals are lost or damaged.

According to Bloomberg, which spoke with "three people with knowledge of the plans," Apple is currently negotiating with Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group Corp., and EMI Group Ltd. The big draw for Apple is that this would help maintain demand for digital downloads in the wake of increasingly popular streaming services, like Pandora.

In addition to having online backups, the deal would also allow downloads to iPad, iPod, and iPhone devices linked to the same iTunes account. This would be a boon to iTunes users and those heavily invested in Apple products, as well as give Apple an added edge in the mobile device market.