Cannot Play "m4a" Songs on Windows Media Player or Movie Maker, Songs Purchased & Downloaded from iTunes

My PC: Windows Vista Business
Browser: Internet Explorer 8
Problem: I'm editing a video using Windows Movie Maker. To add music I purchased and downloaded a number of songs through my iTunes account. The songs play on my PC only when using iTunes software. The file extension on the songs is "m4a".

When I try to play one of the songs in Windows Media Player, I get the following message:

"Windows Media Player cannot play the file. The Player might not support the file type or might not support the codec that was used to compress the file."

When I try to import one of the songs into Windows Movie Maker, I get the following message:

"More Than a Feeling.m4a cannot be imported because the codec required to play the file is not installed on your computer. If you have already tried to download and install the codec, close and restart Windows Movie Maker, and then try to import the file again."

Where do I find the above mentioned "codec" to download?  Will this solve my problem?  Any advice in avoiding this problem in the future?

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M4A is not a compatible format. The simple solution
is to convert the .m4a files to the .wma format and
then import into Movie Maker.

The following free converter works for me...

Free Mp3 Wma Converter
http://www.download.com/Free-Mp3-Wma-Converter/3000-2140_4-10442362.html
(FWIW if you install the converter you may want to uncheck
the offers of Yahoo and Dealio) (also...you may want to uncheck
the CD Ripper and the Easy MP3 Cutter)

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John Inzer - MS-MVP - Digital Media Experience