With iTunes 7.2, Apple launched iTunes Plus and iTunes U

Yesterday, Apple released iTunes 7.2 for DRM-free and higher-quality music. Apple calls this new section 'iTunes Plus' and one can select iTunes Plus as the default place on iTunes to find music. iTunes Plus offers music featuring high quality 256 kbps AAC encoding for audio quality virtually indistinguishable from the original recordings—for just $1.29 per song. iTunes Plus is launching with EMI's digital catalog of outstanding recordings, including singles and albums from Coldplay, The Rolling Stones, Norah Jones, Frank Sinatra, Joss Stone, Pink Floyd, John Coltrane and more than a dozen of Paul McCartney’s classic albums available on iTunes for the first time.

Tunes U is a dedicated area within the iTunes Store featuring free content such as course lectures, language lessons, lab demonstrations, sports highlights and campus tours provided by top U.S. colleges and universities including Stanford University, UC Berkeley, Duke University and MIT. [Bill Fox]