For close to two decades, the iTunes platform has been the top music streaming platform for audiophiles alongside other platforms such as Amazon Music, Spotify, and Pandora. Even though it was initially designed as a library offering organization of music collection for Apple devices, the platform has grown to become one of the world’s most popular online music streaming platforms.
Today, iTunes users can access and purchase millions of tunes from the platform. However, iTunes songs are encrypted using Apple FairPlay DRM protection technology. In these ways, iTunes users cannot play iTunes songs on unauthorized devices. Even though Apple dropped the DRM protection on iTunes songs in 2009, a vast number of iTunes songs are still protected.
With the protection, it becomes impossible to access your playlist to play on any device, and hence the need to remove DRM protection from iTunes music became necessary. Therefore, if you would like to break your iTunes playlist out of the dungeon and have it play on any device, here are a few tips for you!
This is possibly one common yet most engaging and complicated way to remove DRM protection from iTunes Music. The process involves using the iTunes burn feature to burn iTunes music to CDs and then ripping the tracks from the CD to get DRM-free tunes. Even though the process may seem relatively straightforward on paper, burning songs on CDs could take a very long time.
Also, you could end up incurring a lot of cost considering that the songs will consume more memory of your CD. To burn iTunes songs to CDs, you need a blank CD or DVD disc, a CD drive, and a computer. Please, follow the guide below to burn the track of CDs.
Step 1: Install the latest iTunes app
First, access the iTunes page and download the latest iTunes app version. Then, run the software file to install iTunes on your computer.
Step 2: Insert a CD/DVD into the Computer
Launch iTunes and sign to your account using Apple ID. Next, insert the blank CD into your computer CD drive.
Step 3: Add DRM-protected iTunes Songs
Before burning the songs, create a new playlist and add the music you want to remove DRM protection. To create a new playlist, click “File” >> “New” >> “Playlist” and give it a name. Then, drag and drop the iTunes songs onto the newly created playlist.
Step 4: Burn iTunes DRM Music to CD
Now, select the new playlist and click on “File” >> “Burn Playlist to Disc”. On the new pop-up window, select “Audio CD” option. Next, click “Burn” to initiate the burning process.
Step 5: Rip Non-DRM iTunes songs from CD to the Computer
After the burning is complete, it is now time to rip the iTunes to your computer. On iTunes, click “Edit” >> “Preferences” >> “General”, and choose “Import Settings”. Next, select “MP3 Encoder” under the “Import Using” option. Click “Ok” to confirm.
Step 6: Get DRM-free MP3 iTunes Songs
Load an “Audio CD” and choose “Import CD” to import DRM- free iTunes songs from the CD.
Well, this is a pretty new tip for iTunes users. For starters, with the iTunes Match premiumsubscription, it is super easy to remove DRM protection from iTunes. Basically, the service allows you to upload up to 100,000 iTunes tracks to iCloud, from where you can stream and download DRM-free iTunes songs to your device.
In fact, you can download the tracks to a maximum of 10 devices. For new users, the iTunes Match subscription will cost around $25. Below is a short guide on how to subscribe to iTunes Music and remove DRM protection on iTunes tracks.
For Windows PC:
Open iTunes and on the top of the window, click the “Store” option. Next, hit the “iTunes Match” button. Enter the billing information and select the “Subscribe” button.
For Mac computer:
Open the Apple Music app and on the sidebar, click on “iTunes Store” >> “iTunes Match” >> “Subscribe”. Enter your Apple ID and password. Finally, provide the billing information and hit the “Subscribe” button.
Step 1: Launch iTunes and log in to your account. Automatically, the iTunes Match will scan your entire library for available matches.
Step 2: Find the DRM-protected songs. Next, click “View” >> “Show View” >> “Kind” under the File section. Exit the interface and tap on the “Kind” button to sort the tracks.
Step 3: Find “Music” >> “Library”, select the songs you want to remove DRM and hit the “Delete” button on your keyboard.
Step 4: Now, you can download the iTunes songs from iCloud by hitting the iCloud Download icon. The downloaded songs will be 100% DRM- free.
Each of our previously mentioned solutions has its own drawbacks. First, burning iTunes songs on CDs is time-consuming and costly, while iTunes Match limits the number of supported devices to 10. Well, even the two methods can help achieve DRM- free iTunes songs, they are quite limited in their own way. Hence, we would like to introduce you to an ideal and possibly the ultimate way to unprotect protected iTunes tracks.
Ideally, using third-party downloader software is the way, and here we recommend that you try out the Apple Music Converter. It is a top-class downloader software designed to download and convert songs from iTunes and Apple Music platform. With the application, users can effortlessly convert protected M4P-protected iTunes music to MP3, M4A, AC3, AAC, AIFF, and other supported audio files. This means that iTunes fans can play their playlist on all media playing devices, including MP3 players, iPod Nano and PS4.
Aside from converting, the software supports batch conversion and offers neck-breaking conversion speeds, which is a time saver for users. Courtesy of its built-in lossless technology, the program guarantees high-quality music output after conversion. Most importantly, Apple Music Converter is available for both Mac and Windows users at an affordable plan.
Key Features of Apple Music Converter:
Guide on How to Remove iTunes DRM Protection with Apple Music Converter
Step 1: Install, launch and register Apple Music Converter
First, download and install the Apple Music Converter application on your computer. Then, click on the app icon to fire it up. Next, click the Key icon o register the application. Enter the license code you purchased and hit the “Register” option to activate the full of the software.
NB: The Ondesoft Apple Music Converter comes with a limited free trial version. Hence, you must purchase a software license to enjoy the full version.
Step 2: Sign in and set output format
Now use the Apple ID credentials to access your iTunes account. Next, go to the main menu tab and select the “Settings” option. This will launch the format panel, and from here, you can select your preferred audio output format. The software allows you to choose from the several available options, including MP3, AAC, FLAC, WAV, and AIFF. Also, it is possible to customize the songs’ ID3 tags, including the title, artist, album, etc.
Step 3: Select and add iTunes music
Now, find the iTunes songs you want to remove DRM protection. Go on to select and click on the “Add” button to add the songs for conversion. Please follow the steps on your screen to effectively the tracks. You can also refer to the illustrations below.
Step 4: Remove DRM protection from iTunes songs
After selecting the songs, click on the “Convert” button at the bottom, and the Apple Music Converter will automatically remove DRM protection, download, and convert the selected song to the set audio output format. Once the process is complete, hit the folder icon to locate the DRM- free iTunes songs on your computer.
Now, you can quickly transfer the songs and play them on non-Apple devices and applications, anytime, anywhere.
Another way to bypass Apple FairPlay DRM protection on iTunes songs is by using recorder software to record songs as the play from the iTunes platform. The method may seem quite obsolete, but it works. For example, you can use the audio recorder software for Mac to record high-quality songs from iTunes. Check out the quick guide below!
i. Download Audio recorder software on your Mac computer.
ii. Launch the program and set it up.
iii. Under the Audio Host tab, select Windows WASAPI in the dropdown.
iv. Select your preferred loopback device like Speakers or Headphones.
v. Find the iTunes song you want to record.
vi. Play it and hit the “Record” button to start recording the song.
vii. After the recording is complete, hit the “Stop” button to end the recording.
The song will save on your computer from where you can move them to other devices for offline playback.
Conclusion
That’s all! You are now equipped with the best possible ways to remove DRM protection from iTunes music. Alongside the solution, we have featured detailed guides on how to get it done. All that remains is for you to test which method works best. However, we highly recommend that you start by using the Apple Music Converter software. It is undeniably the easiest and fastest way to get rid of DRM protection on your iTunes playlist for offline playback.