Edgar Bronfman, Warner Music’s chief executive, on Thursday slapped down Steve Jobs’s suggestion that record companies do away with copyright protections for digital music in order to spur the market’s growth.

Mr Bronfman, speaking to investors as Warner announced its earnings, called Mr Jobs’s argument “completely without logic or merit” and said his company was committed to the continued use of copyright protections, known as digital rights management, in the same way that software makers and film studios safeguard their intellectual property.