(..) the resurgence of an old technique for recording music on a computer, reapplied to Napster's all-you-can-eat subscription music plan. Using software freely available from America Online's Winamp division, it's possible to turn Napster's copy-protected downloads into unprotected files that can be burned by the hundreds or even thousands freely to CDs.

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For now, Napster and other content providers are saying the "hack" isn't dangerous to their subscription model, even though it can result in the creation of unprotected, fairly high-quality music files.

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The "stream ripping" problem is a different one, essentially a high-tech version of recording a song off the radio. Instead of removing the copy-protection software, a computer program plays the song as it is supposed to, and then records the song as the unprotected audio is sent to the sound card and speakers.

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Microsoft has created software to help block this kind of ripping, but it has rarely been used by content providers. Dubbed "Secure Audio Path," it adds noise to an audio file as it is sent to the sound card. Compatible cards can remove the noise before it reaches the speakers. Any attempt to tap the audio stream before it reaches the sound card would result in a near-unlistenable copy.

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També es pot consultar la noticia d'agència a: Burlan el sistema de protección de Napster To Go.