there was a lawsuit settlement or verdict related to this that i read about in the past year, probably something about price-fixing, altho i don't recall exactly; anyway the news at the time said cd prices should go down--maybe it's taking longer than was previously predicted. In any case, i find it curious that the companies making most cd's are so worried about theft, when they. along with oil and tobacco companies, are among the biggest rip-off artists of all time, e.g., demanding that u buy something before u even know whether u want it, really. Capitalism is definitely a mixed bag.