Millions of Brits who receive new MP3 players this Christmas may have to pay tens of millions of pounds for music and videos they have already legally downloaded.

Those who receive a new make of music player could be in for a shock when they find that they cannot transfer music they have already downloaded and paid for from their old player.

And with the Microsoft Zune, set to be a major rival to the iPod, due to be launched next year, those who buy it may find themselves paying hundreds of pounds to download all of their music again because the new system isn’t compatible with their old player.

Today music bosses were accused of holding millions of musci loving Brits to ransome.

Martin Higginson, founder of mobile content provider MonsterMob Group plc, said that companies were effectively locking customers into staying with them for life to save paying twice for their music.

He also warned it could encourage people to download music illegally.

Mr Higginson said: “The likes of Microsoft and Apple must not be allowed to continue to hold the consumer hostage in this way. The future could prove to be even more costly and confusing as more products and devices enter the market.”