Did yall forget when the RIAA tried to kill portable music players?
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=riaa+rio&btnG=Google+Search

The Rio is the great great great grand daddy of the Ipod and Zune, and Archos, ect. They failed to kill it and make billions off Itunes now.

Your choices are to pay an expensive tab for a single digital song, put up with the DRM lock down while trying to use it, or buy the cd, or go pirate it which has no restrictions whatever.

In the end run the customer realises the cost to hassle ratio tells it all. He is rewarded for not paying because of the ease of use. He is rewarded again by sampling the media without payment to see if it is any good or if it is the same old usual that isn’t worth the money.

There’s an old saying about kissing a lot of frogs to find the prince. That same saying goes equally for music in general. You can never judge the insides by the artwork nor the hype. The only way to find out if it is any good is to try it out before buying. If it is good, then most want the higher quality and the artwork. Something you don’t get on locked down digital files. Until recently you paid a higher price than if you bought the cd in equal song prices, you get no artwork, and you get a lower quality bit rate. None of that makes any sense to someone serious about their music.

The shame of it is that the music industry thinks it’s a bargain that can’t be refused. As usual, a day late and a dollar short.