Considerable coverage today about Norway, joined by consumer groups in Germany and France, putting the pressure on Apple to embrace interoperability of iTunes so that tracks bought from the store can be played back on other devices. Norway is the first country to legally force Apple to take action. The Norwegian consumer ombudsman has set a deadline of October 1 for Apple to make its Fairplay DRM codes available to other companies, or face possible closure.

Other European countries are said to be considering joining the campaign. iTunes goes against the grain of what empowered users increasingly expect from their content experiences (namely content on their terms and on the devices of their choice). Apple’s iTunes, as it is designed now; songs downloaded via iTunes work only with Apple’s iPod players but not rival devices such as Zune. Likewise, iPods generally can’t play copy-protected music sold through non-Apple stores.

A French law that allows regulators to force Apple to make its iPod player and iTunes store compatible with rival offerings went into effect in August. France and Germany are huge markets for mobile music and Apple knows this. It has been working to expand its iPod sales in Europe, and stressed during its quarterly report that its advertising and sales efforts had gained it market share in countries including France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Sweden, Austria and Denmark during the holiday period.