A music download service charges a flat fee each month and 0.99 per download. the total cost for downloading 27 songs this is 42.72. how much fee?

The flat fee is $20.

Let x be the flat fee and 0.99y be the cost of downloading 27 songs. We know that:

$$x + 0.99y = 42.72$$

Substituting y = 27, we get:

$$x + 0.99 * 27 = 42.72$$

$$x + 26.73 = 42.72$$

Subtracting 26.73 from both sides, we get:

$$x = 42.72 - 26.73$$

$$x = 15.99$$

Therefore, the flat fee is $15.99.