Anybody out there know how easy it is to transfer files from a PC to a MacBook Pro? Is it as simple as just burning the files to either CD/DVD or Memory Stick and then ripping them off the CD/DVD or Memory Stick?

I've also bought quite a lot of music from iTunes in the past year, if i make backup of all the files will they also be compatible with a new computer?

Cheers!

Depends on the files. Things like word documents, photos, and the like should present no problems, but applications would be annoying. (You'd have to partition the macbook drive, install windows, etc.)Music files in MP3 or AIFF format will be easily transferable, the proprietary apple ones might give you a little trouble. You'll have to authorize your new computer to play the files, (at least it is that way from mac to mac). Make sure you deauthorize your PC laptop if you're not going to use it again.

Data is not a problem to migrate and a memory stick makes things easier than burning CDs etc.

There shouldn't be any problem transferring files from pc to mac. now the other way around and you need to make sure the burner burns the cd/dvd in a compatible format. - toast burning software gives you this options.

as for after the files have been transfered(pc to mac), playing it may be a problem. make sure you have the right software on you mac. IE quicktime pro (updated) and flip for mac. personally i use quicktime pro, vlc player, and mplayer.

I migrated to MBP from windows a few months ago
The only problem I encountered was opening .Tiff files I had in Windows, some ( multi page scans) won't open in Mac.
Using Parallels overcomes this problem - I just open them in Windows instead.

You have several possibilities to transfer the data, here they are, with a few comments:

Memory sticks, hard disks: The file system matters, use FAT 32 if you don't need to transfer files bigger than 4 GB.
CDs, DVDs: When burning on the PC, deactivate Joliet Level 3 in the advanced options, as it can't be read by other operating systems. Use Level 1 or don't use it at all if this option is available, because Joliet is a Microsoft incompatibilimprovement. There shouldn't be problems when burning DVDs as their standard is more straightforward.
Ethernet cable: Macs speak SMB/CIFS, should work well. If for whatever reason it doesn't, FTP is a good fallback option.

An iTunes account can be active at up to six Macs and Windows computers at a given time, so you should deactivate the account on the Windows machine before selling/deactivating it. If run out of permissions, you have the option to nuke all six activations at once once a year. There should be no problems transfering the files.

Just as a quick point, you'll find it much easier to mount your pc's drive on the mac rather than trying to mount your mac's drive on your pc. So if you're going to use a network, it's easier to drag the files onto your mac, rather than push them from the pc.