A 22-YEAR-OLD Norwegian hacker known as DVD Jon claims to have cracked the security coding on Apple’s iTunes music store and iPod music player.

Jon Lech Johansen, who runs a software company in San Francisco called DoubleTwist Ventures, said yesterday that his code-breaking programme will fool computers into thinking that any MP3 player is an iPod. Likewise, it will make any piece of music or video downloaded from the internet appear to have been bought from iTunes.

Music bought from Apple’s iTunes online store can be played only on the company’s own iPod devices, and the songs, music videos and movies bought on iTunes contain a security code that prevents them from being played on rival media players. The iPod also blocks music bought from other online services such as Amazon.com or Napster.

Mr Johansen, who is a self-trained software engineer, is one of the world’s most notorious hackers. He was accused of breaking the coding that protects DVDs from being copied — a hack that Hollywood claimed cost them billions of dollars in lost revenue — but he was acquitted of all charges after a lengthy trial in Norway.

Apple has yet to respond to Mr Johansen’s claims, but it is understood that the company’s lawyers and software experts are examining them to see if legal action can be taken.

DoubleTwist Ventures said that it had sought legal advice and believes that the hack is entirely above board and commercially viable.

“It doesn’t mean that a big company will not harass us,” Monique Farantzos, the managing director of Double-Twist, said.

“I don’t think we’ll be getting a Christmas card from Mr Jobs,” she said, referring to Steve Jobs, the chief executive of Apple.

DoubleTwist said that it would license the programme to Apple’s competitors.

The company even claimed that Apple might benefit from the hack, as a growing number of governments have questioned the legality of Apple’s own software.

The French Government recently passed a law pressuring Apple to allow music sold by other online providers to be compatible with iPods.

After months of strenuous lobbying, the law ended up containing a loophole that allowed Apple to continue to block music from services other than iTunes.

However, the French case generated a great deal of publicity and other European countries are considering legislation to thwart Apple’s exclusivity.

Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland are considering new laws to govern iTunes, while Britain’s recording industry is in talks with the Government about a similar approach.

“Jon is very passionate about the rights of consumers and choice,” Ms Farantzos said. “This is a perfect time for this product.”

Apple makes the bulk of its profits from the sale of iPods and content from the iTunes store, which is now branching into films.

The company dominates the market for legal music downloads. However, as films and other video content becomes more popular with users of portable media players, the market for downloads is becoming more crowded.

“Things will get worse before they get better,” Ms Farantzos said. “If this situation continues, people will just get pirated content with no restrictions.”

iFACTS

Microsoft will launch its own version of iPod and iTunes next month. Its player is called Zune

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