That availability is what justifies the RIAA's tough legal action. "They've done the right thing," he said. "It comes on the heels of lots of other efforts. There has to be a real change in understanding."

RIAA President Cary Sherman acknowledged that changing the Internet generation's perception that music should be free isn't going to come through a raft of new legislation, though having Bainwol on board will certainly help the group get what it wants from Congress.

Wayne Rosso, president of the Grokster file-sharing service, said that Bainwol "can only be as effective as his constituents will allow him to be... I just hope he brings some sanity to the situation."

But it's hard to get even the voluble, mercurial Rosso to say a discouraging word about Bainwol.

"Our guys in Washington say good things about him. I think we're no better or no worse off than we were with Hilary Rosen," he said.

"He's a bit of an unknown quantity," said Fred Von Lohmann, senior attorney with the EFF. "I think the opening months of this tenure are going to be defined by an issue that at least he himself was not pivotal in selecting. It's certainly a big challenge for anyone."

Will Bainwol find the ultimate solution to square the Internet with the recording industry? That remains a big question. If he's had any sudden flashes of inspiration, he's not saying anything ... yet.

One notable twist in his Capitol Hill relationships shows that even if he ends up butting heads with some of the RIAA's critics, they still want to accommodate him.

Case in point: Norm Coleman, who said Bainwol was such a big help to his 2002 campaign, now is the chief Senate critic of the RIAA's legal tactics against file traders. He's not sweating this disconnect with their otherwise affable relationship, though.

"I talked to Mitch about that," Coleman said. "Sometimes you have to tell your friends you're doing the wrong thing ... I have no problem telling Mitch, 'Hey, I have a concern about the path that they're on.'"

Coleman is quick to add, "If a guy can say he loves somebody, I love this guy!"