I'm only attempting to answer this in the hopes that I'll be corrected...I'm just learning this myself.

ACC is part of the new MPEG-4 (mp4)specification. According to Apple, the files are smaller than MP3s but higher quality.
The ACC format does include DRM (Digital Rights Management), but it's non-intrusive and reasonable. You can use the downloaded songs on up to three computers at once, burn songs to CDs as much as you want, and burn a playlist to CD up to ten times. I'm not sure how the ACC DRM works, but it apparently embeds your Apple ID within the file. When you move it to another Mac, you can import it into iTunes on that Mac just like always. However, when you go to play the first one, it will ask you for the password for your Apple account. This "authorizes" that computer to play those files. You can authorize up to three computers to have access to your Apple account. If you sell or give rid of a Mac, you should deauthorize it before you release it. (According to Apple, initializing the drive does not deauthorize it.)
You can even burn it to cd then convert to mp3 if you want to work around the embedded protection.

If you figure out a way to transfer mp4s (im not sayin it isnt) on a p2p network, then YES...all digital uploads of music are illegal. Downloads, however, I don't think are!!

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Last edited by Digital Aura on Jan-03-2004 at 16:46