Apple are in trouble in Norway over the way their iTunes store is only compatible with the iPod, rather than being accessible with other brands of MP3 players. The consumer mediator in Norway is threatening to haul Apple before a government agency in Norway over the complaint about the way iTunes only works with iPods.

Bjoern Erik Thon, the ombudsman in Norway, stated:

A large part of the music in the iTunes store can still not be used by devices other than the iPod.

iTunes has therefore not met the mediator’s demands.

Apple have been given until November 3rd to reply to the accusation. If they fail to do so by then, Thon says he will take the matter before Norway’s market council. Norway insisted Apple sever the link between iTunes and the iPod in 2006.

iTunes has had enough time to find satisfactory solutions that would make it possible for the music in iTunes to be available to all music players, but this has not been done.

All Apple has done in that time is to offer instructions for users to download music and burn CDs with it, so that they can then be transferred to MP3 players. Thon claims this isn’t sufficient from Apple.