Nils, I agree with your frustration and disgust at the position we've been put in by the RIAA.

But you have to understand that Empeg is in business to make money. And to do that, they have to sell their products worldwide. And to do that, they have to comply with the laws of any country in which their product is sold (in this case, the USA and the AHRA). So we won't be seeing Empeg add an FTP server to the developer image any time soon.

On the bright side, the AHRA does give the consumer a reasonable level of protection. The RIAA is not all-powerful. Much of their current frustration is because they signed away their soul when the AHRA was passed. They're getting revenues from a tax which essentially legalizes limited piracy. Now they're pissed off because the same bill which granted them that revenue also protects the whole MP3 movement. They stamp their feet and clench their fists and say "no, ripping MP3s is not protected by the AHRA!" but they don't have any way to back it up yet.

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Tony Fabris