A new front is opening in the paid music download war just in time for the holidays: Beggars Group, Warner Music, The Orchard (NSDQ: ORCD), EMI and music download site Datz.com are launching Datz Music Lounge, an all-you-can-eat download service costing £99.99 for 12 months. The 2.5 million MP3 tracks, including oldies as well as new releases, come DRM-free and can be kept after the 12-month contract is up. Michael Richardson, MD of Datz, called it was “one of the greatest offers of all time” – though that’s certainly not the case if your favorite artists aren’t signed to Warner, Beggars or EMI. In the announcement, the companies promise more labels will join the project in the coming weeks.

Datz joins a heated marketplace in which Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) is looking to retain its position as the UK’s leading music download retailer amid competition from Nokia’s Comes With Music handset and e-tailer Play.com, which this month secured download rights from all four major labels. Amazon (NSDQ: AMZN) is expected to launch a music download site in the UK as it has in the U.S. Datz claims its music works on any device but to get your hands on it, forget your smartphone: You will need a computer with Windows XP or Vista, 223MB free for the software and a UBS dongle , which can be bought from retailers or from datz.com.

Release.

• Nokia Comes With Music: Thanks For The Tracks, Now Give Us A Real Mobile Experience
• Play.com Steps Up Music Download Battle With 3 Million DRM-free Tracks From All Four Majors