by , 9:30 AM EDT, June 2nd, 2005

Apple Computer announced Thursday it will allow users in some European countries to pay for music they buy through the iTunes Music Store (iTMS) using a third-party payment option.

The service from Firstgate called Click & Buy, will allow iTMS users to pay for their online transactions using Firstgate's service. The service will be available to users in every European country, excluding Switzerland, The Mac Observer has learned.

Firstgate says it has 4.8 million customers using its service to pay bills to over 3,500 merchants.

"The Clkick & Buy system will offer customers the option of paying in variety of ways," said Eddy Cue, Vice President of Applications for Apple. "We're very happy to be able to offer this service to our customers.'

With the new service, ITMS users can now pay for purchased music by credit card, direct debit, prepaid account or through Click & Buy.