@amirm , you wrote:
«If it becomes ubiquitous, it means the consumer has spoken and wants it. In that case, that is it and we better not complain».
Why is it that you conclude that a product which is everywhere is because «the consumer has spoken and wants it»?
Can you support that claim with evidence, science? What sort of science supports that claim?
Let's examine an example. Apple launched their music service with downloadable tracks that were copy protected. This was in sharp contrast to CD that was not. It was huge success. Why? Because Apple forced music labels to unbundle the CD. You could now buy a track for 99 cents. And with one click no less. And unlike the CD, you could have it in your hands in seconds.
Apple fairplay "DRM" was accepted with welcome arms as a result of above. The consumer spoke and that was that as the saying goes.
Take Blu-ray. DVD copy protection was broken wide but Blu-ray had much more powerful copy protection. Yet the consumer appetite for high-resolution video won them over and they accepted the much more secure format. Consumer spoke again. And the consequences were whatever they were.
By the same token, if MQA wins despite any restrictions it may bring, that is that. It will be because consumers want to stream high-res audio in MQA format. Protesting against such an outcome will do nothing. The people paying will always win over people who are sitting on the sidelines throwing rocks.
Take MP3. It reduced quality from CD. But again, consumer spoke because they wanted the convenience of on-the-road music enjoyment and happily gave up the fidelity difference. Again, consumer spoke.
Look at Google chrome. No one thought a new browser had a chance against Internet Explorer. But google thought different: they made a very fast and light-weight browser. They added features like automatic background update. And in short few years, became the #1 browser in the market. Quite remarkable. So much so that Microsoft had disbanded the IE team for the most part thinking "the battle of browsers was over and they had won forever." Again, consumer spoke. To the chagrin of web developers that they had to make sure their web sites looked good in both IE and Chrome.
Take safety in cars. Initially in US this was a government mandate. But automakers who cried and cried due to higher costs realized that safety sold. Today they pile on more safety features than one can count. Because the consumer has spoken and is willing to pay more to get a safer car.
The business dynamics are not hard science like audio. But it is important to consider the super valid factors here. Ignoring them gives you the many failures of others trying these things.