Hmmm... I would debate that "profit" is a matter of opinion in the sense of "how much" profit is enough to keep the line alive. I would ask the question that if Empeg had not sold to SonicBlue, would they still be making the Empeg for the niche market. Does Empeg have the same revenue requirements that SonicBlue had? Y'know? I think if the unit was still out there, it would still be selling... just not at the nose-bleed "I gotta have it" pace that SonicBlue expected.

Honestly, most of the people I showed the player to "got it" but didn't want to spend the money whether it was made by Sony or Kenwood or Rio (JukeBox) or Archon (whoever it is that makes that other one).

The Sony with CD/HD is a cool (and expensive unit) - at $1500 vs. the Empeg, the Empeg still wins.

My wonder is why (not how - they have billions) Sony puts something so crippled on the market when others who offered a technically superior unit (empeg) got out.

In the end, a lot of these products a niche. I don't see how the future is going to make it when I know college grads who are as computer illiterate as my 70yr old dad. In fact, my mom, at 64 knows more about computers than some of those college grads...

Technology seemed to really surpass society's understanding of it back in the 90's. The world needs to catch up. The only question is how long it will take for that to happen.

I'm done now.