"The president has had criticism from some Republican candidates who don't want a timeline to bring the war to a close, " Mr Rhodes replied.

BBC: Afghanistan, the election and the end game

But it bolted from the prime minister's ruling coalition, the United Iraqi Alliance, last year when al-Maliki wouldn't set a timeline for the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

CNN: Clashes in Baghdad's Sadr City kill 20

And while it's encouraging that Glickman recognized the "impatience" of consumers, he didn't give a timeline, instead saying that pricing and business models were "way beyond" him.

ENGADGET: MPAA says it's committed to fair use, interoperability, and, uh, DRM