iTunes Widens Lead in Digital Music

ITunes has widened its lead in the digital music marketplace, according to a new study by research firm Ipsos. 82% of people who download digital music are aware of iTunes and 38% of them consider iTunes the market leader, according to the study.

ITunes' usage has grown by 18% since 2006, a much higher figure than other, competing services. Apple's service was also considered the best option by 50% of respondents.

This is all continuing evidence of iTunes' dominance in the music space, a point made most strikingly a week ago by iTunes becoming the leading music retailer in the U.S. both online and offline. Despite increasing competition from AmazonMP3 and the forthcoming MySpace music download service, it looks like iTunes is locking up the digital music space, at least for now.